Something That Matters
by momma2fan
Summary: Their voices once sang in harmony, but a misunderstanding pulled them apart. Can two broken hearts be healed and sing a new song? AH M for future lemons. E/B A/J Em/R
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copy right infringement intended. **

**AN: Here's a little snippet of my new story. Glass is the priority right now, but this will be posted regularly starting in February. Thanks to my beta, toocute24, for once again making sense of my nonsense.**

I sat down and flipped through the mail that Carmen had left on the table for me. I gasped when I came across some familiar handwriting that I hadn't seen in five years.

I took my cup of coffee and the letter, and walked out to sit on my deck. Once I was comfortable, I slid my finger under the flap and slowly opened the envelope before extracting the paper within. Taking a deep breath, I began to read.

_Dear Bella,_

_I know it's been a while since you've heard from me, and I'm sorry for that. When things between us went sour, I thought that it would be easier to cut you out completely. Easier for whom, I'm not sure. It certainly hasn't been easy for me. I think of you every day and wish that things could have been different, but I have come to realize that I was at fault for what happened between us._

_Enough dwelling in the past, though. I heard that you are taking a break from the industry, and I hope that this letter finds you well. A project has fallen in my lap to write a song for a benefit for the Cullen Foundation. Yes, my mother and father have started it, but it was my uncle that made the request. _

_The song that I have written needs a woman to sing it. Unfortunately, I know no other female singers with the voice to pull it off. My point is that I was hoping that you would be willing to sing with me... for old time's sake. If you are willing, I will be in the studio on Saturday all day, laying down the tracks. I hope to see you._

_Edward_

I sat back and let the tears flow down my cheeks as I thought about the man and the past. I was soon lost in memories and wishful thinking.

**AN: Here is the beginning. Let me know what you think.**


	2. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copy right infringement intended. **

**AN: Special thanks to my beta, toocute24. Sally you are the best! Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used. **

**BPOV**

I walked into the bar and looked around, trying to find my sister and our friends. I fished my phone out of my pocket and sent her a text.

_I'm here. Where r u? ~B_

I didn't have to wait long before my phone vibrated in my hand.

_Go to your left. We are sitting at a table by stairs. ~K_

I turned in the direction that Kate told me, skirting around tables and waitresses. I finally spotted them and immediately went over to them.

"Took you long enough! Where the hell have you been?" Kate asked.

"Jake needed to 'talk,'" I told her, making the quotes with my fingers.

Rosalie scoffed. "When is the mutt gonna take a hint?"

I laughed. "I think he finally got it. At the very least, he got a fat lip. Fucker tried to cop a feel."

"Did you hit him?" Alice wanted to know.

"No, I elbowed him," I commented.

"Hey, ladies, what can I get ya?" a brown haired woman asked at our sides.

"I'll take a Cosmo," Alice said.

"I'll have a dry martini," Kate requested.

Rosalie and I looked at each other and ordered long-necks. I am not a fru-fru drink kind of girl. Give me a beer and I am happy.

After the waitress had brought our drinks, I asked the question I had been dying to. "So why are we here?"

Rosalie and Kate laughed. Kate was two years older than me, but had never treated me like the younger sibling. Rosalie, Alice, and I had met in grade school and had been inseparable since.

"We are here to listen to the fuckhot band that plays here," Kate grinned.

Alice was bouncing in her seat. "They also do this thing where they play a song that is a duet. Whatever table number they call, a lucky girl from it gets to get up and sing with the lead singer. See, that's why all the tables are numbered."

"Down Pixie!" Rose laughed.

I nodded, "Okay, so if our table number is called, who is gonna go sing?" Three sets of eyes looked at me. "Oh, no. No way. Come on! You guys can't expect me to get up there. That's crazy!"

"Oh, come on, Bells. You're the best singer out of all of us. Plus, you would get to meet the hot band and maybe help out your big sister and friends," Kate encouraged.

I sighed in resignation. "Whatever. What's the likely hood that they'll call this table number, anyway?"

You know that saying 'don't count your chickens before they hatch'? Yeah, I should have thought of that. I had no idea at the time, though, that calling the number for our table would change my life in unimaginable ways.

**EPOV**

"Edward, I swear man, if we don't get someone on stage tonight that can actually carry a tune, I am gonna beat the drums with my head to avoid the misery," Emmett complained as we got ready to go onstage.

I laughed. "Emmett, stop being so dramatic."

"Yeah. Think about it this way: we are getting to meet some amazing looking chicks," Garrett laughed.

"Come on, guys," Jasper, always the peacemaker, spoke up. "It's only one song."

I just shook my head and strapped up before jumping on the stage. Before we got started, I looked at Jazz, "Hey, Bro, you gonna be alright on the steel tonight?"

He snorted. "It'll be fine, Edward. Calm down."

I nodded and headed toward the front. I plugged my Fender Strat in to the waiting amp and ran through a few chords. Just as I was about to step up to the microphone, I saw her.

She was beautiful. Her long brown hair reached her waist, and she had a creamy complexion that wasn't caked over with make-up. The tight skinny jeans and blue sweater she wore made the 'v' of her skin that was visible even creamier.

I broke from my stare as the guys started the music. Once I got pulled in, I almost forgot about the stunning brunette…almost.

**STM**

We had been going strong for about an hour when we decided to take a break.

"We'll be back in fifteen. Then we'll announce our lucky singer," I said and then backed off the stage.

I walked into the dressing area that the owners of the bar had established for us. The guys were already talking about some girls that they had seen.

"Man, there was this leggy blonde. Mmm, come to Papa!" Emmett was saying.

"It better not have been the blonde that I spotted," Garrett warned.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, grabbing a bottle of water.

Jasper looked over at me. "We spotted these three girls coming in tonight and we're staking our claim. Sorry, Bro, but there are only three of them."

I shrugged. "No problem. I spotted my own pretty lady. Man, Jazz, she is the prettiest woman I have ever seen."

Jasper raised an eyebrow. "Better looking than Lauren?"

I grimaced, thinking of my ex. She was all plastic, even her personality. "Much better. So, whose turn is it?"

Emmett smiled. "Mine."

"Okay, what number?"

Emmett sat back and thought for a moment, scratching his chin like this was the biggest decision he would ever make. "Forty-four."

"Alright. Let's go see what we get," Jasper laughed.

"Remember, it could be a guy," Garrett chuckled.

"Bite your tongue!" Emmett exclaimed.

I just shook my head and laughed as we headed back out on stage. I watched as Jasper set up the second mic stand and then handed the microphone to the waiting busboy. He told him the table number and then stood up straight.

I stepped up to my mic. "How we doing tonight?"

A loud roar came through the crowd, along with the usual catcalls and shrill whistles.

"Alright, well, Liam is heading over to the lucky table this evening. Congratulations to the patrons of table forty-four. If you're not familiar with how this works, well, we play music that is usually sung as a duet. You jump in at the appropriate place. Don't worry if you can't carry a tune; we're all here to have fun." I looked over at Emmett and grinned when he rolled his eyes.

"Let's do this," Emmett said into his mic.

The music started and I let it wash over me, waiting to see who my singing companion would be for the evening. Nothing could have prepared me for who it was.

**BPOV**

When they called out our table number I just about died. Alice clapped like a giddy elf, while Rose and Kate laughed at my blushing face. Not one to back down from a challenge, though, I took the microphone from Liam.

When the music started, I got up and made my way slowly toward the stage. The minute the music began, I knew what the song was. I would recognize those guitar riffs anywhere.

When the lead singer started singing, I felt heat rush to my body, just from his voice.

_We didn't care if people stared  
We'd make out in a crowd somewhere  
Somebody'd tell us to get a room  
It's hard to believe that was me and you  
Now we keep saying that we're OK  
But I don't want to settle for good not great  
I miss the way that it felt back then I wanna feel that way again_

I stopped at the top of the stairs that would lead me across the dance floor, I didn't want to be seen yet, although I knew I couldn't avoid it forever.

_Been so long that you'd forget the way I used to kiss your neck_

I lifted the mic to my lips.

_Remind me, remind me_

I watched as the crowd parted, so I stepped forward and met the greenest eyes I had ever seen.

_So on fire so in love. Way back when we couldn't get enough_

I continued forward as I sang the words, never taking my eyes from his.

_Remind me, remind me_

I stopped when I was halfway there and continued the song, making sure to keep eye contact.

_Remember the airport dropping me off  
We were kissing goodbye and we couldn't stop_

**EPOV**

I was staring into the warm chocolate eyes of my beauty. She had the body of a seductress and the voice of an angel.

_I felt bad cause you missed your flight_

When her voice meshed with mine, it was indescribable.

_But that meant we had one more night_

She stopped halfway to the stage. She was really putting on a show and I couldn't help but grin.

_Do you remember how it used to be  
We'd turn out the lights and we didn't just sleep_

I was mesmerized as I listened to her voice. She was the best one that we had ever had join us.

_Remind me, Baby, remind me_

I watched her as she continued to step toward the stage, creeping ever closer to me.

_Oh, so on fire so in love  
That look in your eyes that I miss so much_

She stopped at the edge of the stage. I reached down and pulled her up at the perfect moment. The touch of her skin to mine, almost made me forget the words.

_Remind me, Baby, remind me_

She was standing right next to me - so close that I could smell her strawberry scented hair.

_I wanna feel that way_

I stared at her.

_Yeah, I wanna hold you close_

Her eyes stayed on mine and it was like we sang the next words to each other.

_Oh, if you still love me  
Don't just assume I know_

I swung my guitar around and ran straight into the musical break as she continued to sing.

_Baby, remind me, remind me_

Her voice was still going strong when the guitar riff was over.

_Do you remember the way it felt?_

I leaned toward the microphone.

_You mean back when we couldn't control ourselves_

She smiled at me.

_Remind me_

I winked at her.

_Yeah, remind me_

I picked up the guitar riff again.

_All those things that you used to do  
That made me fall in love with you  
Remind me, oh, Baby, remind me_

It seemed like she hung onto those notes forever. Where had this girl been hiding?

_Yeah, you'd wake up in my old t-shirt  
All those mornings I was late for work  
Remind me_

_Oh, Baby, remind me  
_  
_Oh, Baby, remind me, Baby, remind me  
Yeah, you'd wake up in my old t-shirt  
Oh, yeah, remind me  
Baby, remind me _

The crowded bar when nuts as the song came to a close. I had forgotten where I was, I was so lost in her. I felt my dick twitch as she blushed from all the attention. What was this girl doing to me?


	3. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copy right infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta, toocute24. Sally, thanks for making sense of my nonsense. Also, thanks to my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

I'm a coward. After I finished singing the song that night, I had jumped off that stage and run out of the bar. My sister had called me later to find what had happened.

"_Bella, what the hell?"_

"_I'm sorry, Katie."_

"_Bella, I have never seen you look at anyone like that – ever. I'm telling you right now, I thought that both of you were gonna go up in flames."_

"_I know. That's why I had to get out of there. Kate, he barely touched me and my body felt like it was in fire. I've never felt that before. It scared me a little."_

"_Oh, Bella. Honey, Jake is an ass; he never deserved you and he never will. Edward on the other hand…"_

"_How do you know his name?" I needed to know._

"_Um, well, we kinda stuck around until last call and we met all of them. Actually, I, uh, have a date with the bassist, Garrett."_

"_Did you tell him that you knew me?" Part of me wanted her to say no, the other part yes._

"_I did; I told him that you were my younger sister and that you had been having a rough time of it lately." I heard silence and then she started again. "Listen, we're all going back tonight. Come with us?"_

I had never answered her, but still I found myself standing outside the bar well before it opened. I could hear the band through the door, warming up.

"Come on Bella - just open the door and go talk to him." I gave myself a pep talk.

I finally squared my shoulders and opened the door. I saw that guy Liam when I first walked in. He waved and gestured for me to go ahead down to the stage area. I thanked him with a wave and started walking toward the band. I stopped at the bottom of the steps and just listened to them rehearse.

When the music stopped, I watched the drummer gesture to me and Edward looked up. I blushed and looked down, then back up to find his eyes still on me.

"Let's take a break guys." He jumped off the stage, not waiting to see if they agreed, and walked toward me.

I licked my suddenly dry lips and gave him a small smile. "Hey. You guys sound great."

"Thanks." He ran a hand through his hair. "I, uh, didn't think I was going to see you again."

"Yeah, sorry about that," I apologized.

"No, don't worry about it. You're sister said that you were a little gun shy."

"Kate!" I hissed.

"Don't go gettin' mad at her, I asked. Especially when I found out that she was your sister. How else was I gonna find out your name, _Bella_?" he grinned.

I blushed and looked down again. Suddenly, I felt an almost electric spark run through my body when he reached out to touch my chin, bringing my eyes back to his.

I don't know what possessed me, but I reached up and wrapped my hand around his wrist. "Edward, I…"

He closed his eyes. "Say it again."

"What? Your name?" I giggled. "Edward, open your eyes and look at me." I waited until his emerald orbs met mine. "Sorry I ran out on you."

"Apology accepted," he smiled.

"Hey, Ed. Let's go man!"

Edward turned and nodded before meeting my eyes again. "You gonna stick around this time?"

I shrugged. "Sure, why not?"

"Great!" He leaned down faster than I could blink and pecked my lips before running back to the stage.

I couldn't help the smile that graced my face as I brought my fingers up to my lips that were still warm from his brief touch.

**EPOV**

I can't believe she came back. I can't believe I kissed her. I was still reeling when we stopped practice and went to relax before we opened up. I had invited Bella to come back and hang with us and was pleasantly surprised when she agreed.

"So, Bella, what do you do?" Jasper asked.

"I'm a student at State. I'm actually working on my Masters in Music Education."

Jasper raised his eyebrows, impressed. Garrett grinned over at me

"So, Bells…can I call you Bells?" Emmett laughed.

Bella grinned over at him. "Sure, Emmett."

"So, Bells, what do we have to do to get you to sing with us again?"

I smiled when she ducked her head to hide the blush that graced her cheeks.

"Seriously, Bella, you are the best female singer we have ever had up there," Garrett chimed in.

"Yeah, we've been doing this for the last few months. No one has ever jumped on stage with pipes like yours," Jasper complimented.

I decided to save her from further embarrassment. "Okay, guys, leave her alone. You know how this works."

The three of them grumbled at me but stopped bugging Bella. I turned to smile at her when she mouthed 'thank you'. I just winked at her.

A loud knock on the door caused her to squeak in surprise. "Hey guys, bar's opening in…" James stopped when he crossed the threshold, "Oh, sorry, didn't mean to interrupt. Bar opens in fifteen."

I nodded up at him. "Thanks, James."

We were silent until he left the way he came. "Man, I hate that guy."

"Yeah, he's kinda weird," I agreed with Garrett.

I turned to look at Bella, but she was staring at her phone and her body was extremely tense.

"Bella?" I waited until her eyes met mine and was shocked by the anger I saw in them. "Everything okay?"

"Umm, yeah, everything is great." She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "I, uh, have to go take care of something. I'll see you guys later."

I watched as she stood abruptly and nearly sprinted out the door.

"Dude, what the fuck?" Emmett asked.

"I have no idea," I muttered, staring at the door that she had just exited.

**BPOV**

I stormed out of the bar and came face to face with the idiot that refused to leave me alone.

"What the fuck are you doing here, Jacob?" I hissed.

"Bella, please, we can work this out! I love you!" he pleaded.

I groaned. "You don't love me, you love the game. I am a person, with real feelings, not a toy that you can get your kicks with and then leave in the dirt. Stay away from me!"

I turned to leave, but he grabbed my arm and spun me back around. "This isn't over."

I balled up my hand into a fist, thumb out, and pulled my arm back before punching him in the face, and then landing my knee in his groin. He fell to the ground, moaning and holding his junk. "If you ever put your hands on me again. Jacob Black, I will have you arrested for assault. Stay very far away from me. We are over!"

I turned and came face to face with my sister and our friends. All three had glares on their faces and stiff postures. I walked to them and the four of us looked at the pathetic man that was still lying on the ground.

"Come on, Slugger; let's get some ice for your hand." Kate smiled as she wrapped her arm around my shoulders. I grinned and followed them in to the bar.

Rose spotted Liam as soon as we walked in and requested a bag of ice and a towel. I followed them over to a table as we waited. Once we were seated, Liam brought the ice over and Kate immediately applied it to my bruising knuckles.

"Thanks."

"So what the hell was he doing here?" Alice wanted to know.

I looked up at them. "You know…the usual. I love you, please give me another chance. I told him it was over and that I wasn't a toy he could leave in the dirt."

"Why did you hit him?" Rose questioned.

"He grabbed me and yanked me to him. I had no choice; you know my dad taught us better than that." I shrugged like it was no big deal.

As I was talking to them, I remembered my abrupt departure from the guys and immediately felt guilty. I pushed my chair back. "I'll be back in a few," I said as I stood and walked toward the dressing room.

I reached the door and gathered up my courage to knock. The door swung open and I was met by a blue-eyed blonde with obvious enhancements. "May I help you?"

"Uh, yeah, I need to speak with Edward."

The sneer that appeared on her face caused me to step back a little. "He's indisposed."

"Hmm, well this will just take a minute, Barbie." I pushed her out of the way and walked in the door.

"Bells!" Emmett stormed.

"Hey, Em," I smiled.

"Bella?"

I turned and found myself looking in Edward's green eyes. "Hey, um, do you have a second?"

"Yeah, let's go in here; we can talk."

"Eddie!" The blonde simpered.

"Lauren, get the fuck out of here!" Garrett roared.

"But…"

Edward looked at me and smiled. "I'll be right there."

I nodded and watched him walk over to the blonde. "You need to leave, now. I have asked and asked; now I am telling you…stay the fuck away from me, Lauren."

He turned away from her - leaving her sputtering - and walked back to me. He placed his hand on the small of my back and led me into a separate room off the large area.

Shutting the door behind him, he turned to me. "Is everything okay?"

I nodded. "I'm sorry that I ran out of here like that."

"You seem to be running from me a lot."

I shook my head. "I'm not running from you. There was something I had to take care of. Now I have." I stepped up to him and looked into his eyes.

Edward's hand reached up and brushed a lock of my hair behind my ear, "Are you sure?"

Nodding, I reached up and wrapped my hand around his neck as I pulled his head toward mine. When our lips met, the spark that I felt that first night was still present, only stronger. I felt his tongue sweep across my lip and opened, allowing his tongue to dance with mine. When he pulled back, I sucked in a deep breath.

"Wow," Edward whispered.

"Yeah."

"I have to get out there. Please, don't disappear on me again," Edward pleaded.

"I won't."

He kissed me one last time before I headed out and rejoined my girls at our table. I blushed under their scrutiny, wondering what the night would bring.

**AN: There will be more revealed on the Jake front. For now, though, leave me some love.**


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copy right infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Special thanks to my beta, toocute24, and pre-reader, Bee1982. **

**BPOV**

It had been almost a month since I had gone back to Handlebar J's. I was knee-deep in finals and trying to get my last projects turned in. I was starting to feel like I couldn't breathe. Was all of this school really worth it?

The ringing of my phone interrupted my thought process, so I was less than pleasant when I answered. "What?"

"Damn, Bella. Is that anyway to talk to your favorite sister?"

I sighed and leaned my head on my hand. "Sorry, Kate, I'm studying. What's up?"

"Take a break and meet us at J's."

I sighed again before answering her. "I can't, Kate. I have to get this project done. If I can do that, then I am done with school until January."

"Dammit, Bella, all you do is study. You haven't been out with us in a month," Kate complained.

"Well, I'm sorry that I value my education, Kate. I only have one semester left before I get my Masters. Do you have any idea the endless possibilities that I will have with a Masters in Education?"

"I get it, Bells, really I do, but it's Saturday night. Can't you put the books down for one evening and come out with me and the girls? Please, Bella?"

"Ugh! Fine, Kate!" I had to pull the phone from my ear at Kate's squeal. "Kate?" I got no response because she was yelling at someone in the background. "Kate!" Again, nothing. "Kathryn Renee Swan!"

"What!?"

"Don't yell at me, Kate; I've been trying to get your attention. Who were you talking to?"

"Sorry, Bella, I was talking to Garrett."

Great! That meant that Edward would soon know that I would be there tonight. It wasn't that I didn't want to see him, but they had been begging me to sing with them again for the last two weeks.

Edward and I had been talking or texting almost every night for a month. I had finally told him everything about Jake and the fallout of that relationship, and we had agreed to take whatever this was between us slow so that we didn't suffer from the curse of the rebound.

"Listen, Kate, I'll meet you there, okay?"

"Don't get lost in your books again, Bells," Kate demanded.

"I won't…" I left it at that and hung up the phone, turning back to my studies.

**~~STM~~**

I walked into the crowded bar only an hour past the time I was expected. I walked around looking for my sister, Rose and Alice before I finally found them at a table directly in the line of sight of the stage. _Perfect._

I walked to the table and was pulling out a chair when they finally noticed me. "Hey…"

"Where the fuck have you been?" Kate snapped.

Instead of sitting, I turned and made my way back through the bar and toward the door. I wasn't about to sit down and make nice when my sister was being a bitch.

"Bella! Wait, please?"

I stopped in my tracks and turned around. The person who came after me was not the one that I expected. "Garrett?"

"Please, don't leave. Kate has been worried about you and thought that you needed a study break. She was worried when you didn't show when you told her that you would."

"That's not an excuse for her to be a bitch, Garrett. And if she was that concerned, why didn't she call? I haven't missed a single call or text tonight."

"I don't know what to tell you, Bella. Just please don't leave." Garrett looked at his watch and then back at me. "Look, we're gonna take the stage in fifteen. Come back and talk to Edward; chill for a bit to calm down, and _then _go back out to join the girls."

I sighed and then nodded my head before following him to the back area of the bar where the dressing rooms were.

**EPOV**

I paced the floor, waiting for her arrival. In all the talks that we'd had over the last month, I hadn't once mentioned that someone was coming to hear us. Kate came up with the brilliant idea that getting Bella to sing with us the night that the scout came would make us sound all the better. I hadn't wanted to distract Bella from her finals, but I had been out-voted, so I reluctantly agreed

The opening of the door brought an end to my pacing, and as I turned, I came face to face with the woman I had been dreaming about for weeks. I couldn't help the sigh of relief that slipped out.

"About fucking time!" Emmett laughed loudly. "I think Ed, here, was gonna wear a hole in the floor waiting for you."

I shook my head and glared at my brother. "Shut it, Emmett." I turned and looked at my brown-eyed girl. "Hi…I'm glad you're here."

Bella smiled at me and walked closer. "Why? What's going on that makes it so important for me to be here? My sister is being a class-A bitch and Emmett is telling me that you're pacing. Would someone like to tell me what the hell is going on? The truth this time."

I watched as Bella turned and glared at Garrett, who ducked his head and took a seat next to Emmett. Jasper came around the corner just as I was about to explain.

"She's here. James sat her over by the girls, close to the stage."

I turned to look at Bella to gauge her reaction, but I was not prepared for the shock. "You guys have a scout here tonight?"

I nodded slowly. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I wanted to be sure that she would show first, and then Garrett and Emmett thought it would be a good idea for you to sing with us. Kate said it would be better to not say anything…"

"Edward, stop!" Bella held up a hand to cut me off.

I stopped my rant and looked in to her eyes. They were dancing with amusement. She placed the hand that stopped me to my cheek and then spoke again.

"Sweetie, all you had to do was ask me. If I can help you further your career, then I'm in."

The guys whooped behind us while I swept Bella up in my arms and swung her around the room. When I finally set her back on her feet, I thanked her.

"Thank you, Baby. This means...so much." I leaned down and pressed my lips to hers.

"Aww!" Jasper chuckled.

Bella giggled against my lips and then pulled away. "What song are you gonna do?"

I smiled crookedly but didn't say a word.

**~~STM~~**

We took the stage and tried to expel our nervous energy by jumping into our first number. The crowd was great, and danced and sang along with us. We had been playing for an hour when we decided to take a ten minute break before coming back to do the duet.

"We'll be back in ten, when we will have a lucky person join us up here," I announced in the mic before leaving the stage.

I followed my brothers and Garrett backstage and into our dressing room. Once the door was closed, I plopped down onto the couch and took a deep breath.

"Relax, bro. Things are gonna be great, and then we'll get out of this town and to Nashville where we belong," Emmett said as he sat beside me.

"I hope so, Em."

"Mom and Dad are out there." Jasper announced when he came out of the bathroom. "They're sitting with the girls."

"Great," I grumbled.

"Oh, come on, Edward. They just want to be a part of this," Jasper growled at me.

"I know, but I am nervous enough as it is."

"Stop it, man. We'll be fine and then leave this place behind," Garrett encouraged.

A knock on our door told us that our ten minutes were up. We all stood up, took deep breaths, and then walked back out to the stage.

While Emmett got comfortable behind the drums and Garrett and Jasper strapped on their guitars, I stepped up to the mic.

"About six weeks ago, we had the pleasure of having an amazing voice join us on stage. Tonight, we would like to ask her to join us once again," I invited.

I watched as Bella stood up from the table she was at with my parents and began her walk to the stage. Once she reached the edge, I reached down and pulled her up, much like I had six weeks ago. However, tonight, I pressed a gentle kiss to her lips while the audience cheered and cat-calls rang out.

I stepped back from her and back up to my mic. "Let's do this."

Emmett counted it off and Jasper and Garrett joined in. I saw the smile break across Bella's face when she recognized the song.

_Maybe life has got you rundown  
I think it's time, Girl, that we slow down  
So take a look, it's almost sundown_

I nodded at her as she stepped up to the mic.

_So why don't you lay right here  
Let me just ease your mind  
I'm givin' you all my time  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on loving you  
Strong and slow, the way that you want me to  
Maybe my whole life through  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on loving you_

Bella smiled at me as she got sang the next lines.

_When that morning sun is dawning  
Baby both of us should call in  
'Cause we've got too much love to fall in_

We kept right on track, mixing our vocals and harmonies. I loved singing with her. I would love nothing more than for our bodies to sing, but I thought it was too soon for that still.

_So why don't you lay right here  
Let me just ease your mind  
I'm givin' you all my time  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on loving you  
Strong and slow, the way that you want me to  
Maybe my whole life through  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on loving you_

I was able to glance out and see the scout, and could tell by the way her head was bobbing that she was into our sound.

_Why don't you lay right here  
Let me just ease your mind  
Give you all my time  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on  
Strong and slow, the way that you want me to  
Baby my whole life through  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on,  
Strong and slow, the way that you want me to  
Maybe my whole life through  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on loving you  
Soft and slow, the way you want me to  
Maybe my whole life through  
I'm gonna keep on, keep on, keep on loving you_

I'm gonna keep on, keep on loving you.

When the song came to a close, we had hope that our careers were just beginning.

**AN: I hope you enjoyed this one. Leave me your thoughts. If there are any songs that you would like to see in this story, please let me know. Until next time.**


	5. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Early posting, as I will be having surgery on Friday for my regular post day. Enjoy!**

**AN: Thanks to my beta, toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982. Special thanks to Lauren Briant aka GeekSpectacular, for coming up with the name for the guys' band. **

**On a more personal note…The fandom lost a great friend this week. Although I didn't know her personally, I did help write a fic for her cause, SU4K, along with my good friend Bee1982. Rest in peace, Katalina Roseph, you will be missed.**

**BPOV**

I was sitting with my sister and our friends, as well as Esme and Carlisle – Edward's parents – when I felt eyes on me. I turned my head and met the green gaze of the scout that had come to hear the band play. Her stare was intense, almost like I was something to eat.

I blinked and looked away quickly, coming back to the conversation I was having with Esme. "I'm sorry, what was the question?"

Esme smiled softly. "I was just wondering how long you've been singing?"

"Yes, I would like to know that, as well," a voice sounded from behind us.

I turned, seeing the woman who had been staring at me moments ago, was now standing beside my chair. "I'm sorry, who are you?"

"I apologize, my name is Gianna Forester. I am a talent scout for the Volturi Management Group." She held out her hand to me.

I managed to swallow my surprise and shook her hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Bella Swan. Would you like to join us?"

"Thanks," she said as she pulled out a chair and sank in to it. "As I was saying, I represent VMG. I was sent here to listen to the band, but I had no idea that they had a talent like you with them."

"Oh," I shook my head, "I don't normally sing with them. This was a special occasion."

"Hmm, well, have you ever thought of singing yourself, Bella? I think that you could have a great career. I'm not usually wrong."

"I appreciate that, Gianna, but I don't want to steal the thunder of the band."

"I'm not saying that you can, Bella, I just think that you could start some thunder of your own." Gianna stood and said, "Think about it. I would love to hear you sing before I leave tonight."

All I could do was nod and look out at the stage, where Edward was still performing with questions in his eyes.

**STM**

As soon as the band was finished for the night and the bar was closed, I caught up to Edward. I wanted to explain what was going on and why Gianna was talking to me. I knocked on the dressing room door, only to have Gianna answer. I hadn't seen her come back here.

"Bella, come on in; we were just talking about tonight's performances." Gianna invited with a smile.

I walked in and gave the guys a small smile. "Hey." I turned to Gianna and asked, "Can I get a moment alone with them, please?"

Gianna grinned. "Sure, I'll be right back."

I waited until she left before turning and looking at all of the guys. Edward's were the last eyes that I met, and looked hurt and betrayed.

"Um, listen, she approached me. I didn't agree to anything and I didn't say anything."

"We know that, Bella," Jasper told me.

I looked at him, surprise written on my face. "Then explain to me, Jasper, why your brother is looking at me like I just broke his favorite guitar?"

The silence was deafening while I waited for someone to speak, to prove me wrong…anything. None of them said a thing. With a nod, I broke the silence. "I'm sorry if my offering to help _you_ has back fired. I was told that they wanted all of us. Apparently, that is not the impression you were left with. Don't worry, though, I won't be around to interfere anymore. Save me an autograph." My voice broke and I spun to leave, only to find my way blocked.

"I hope you aren't leaving." The man standing before me smiled.

"Actually, I am. Please excuse me." I moved to go around him, but was again thwarted by the man behind him.

Gianna walking in, halting any further moves I would have made. "Bella, I would like you to meet my bosses, Caius and Marcus Volturi. Marcus, this is Bella; she's the one I was telling you about."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Bella," Marcus said, holding his hand out to me.

"You, too." I shook his hand, stunned. I had most certainly heard of Marcus Volturi. He represented some of the biggest female singers in the industry.

"Fella's, this is Caius Volturi. Caius, this is the band, Heart Strong. Edward, Jasper, and Emmett Cullen, and Garrett Cox."

"Gentleman, I am thrilled to meet you. Gianna here has been telling me about that spectacular performance from this evening." Caius greeted them enthusiastically and shook all of their hands.

I watched as the demeanor of all four of them changed the moment that Caius sat down and started talking to them. They all relaxed and seemed anxious to talk. I wished that they had been like that with me a few moments ago.

"Bella, let's you and I go have a conversation."

I turned and looked back at Marcus. "Okay," I said quietly, taking another quick glance at Edward, only to see him occupied with Caius.

I followed Marcus out to a waiting table and chairs in the now empty bar. My sister and friends were already gone, along with Edward's parents. I guess they figured we would be a while.

"Have a seat, Bella." I sat in the chair opposite where Marcus sat down. "So tell me, have you been singing long?

That conversation changed my life – forever.

**STM**

**EPOV**

When I saw that scout walk over to Bella and sit down, I couldn't help the slice of betrayal that ran through me. I knew that it wasn't her fault that the scout was talking to her, but a part of me thought that she wanted it. I know that it was wrong, but I couldn't help it.

When she walked in to the dressing area and tried to explain the situation and that Gianna had approached her, I wasn't ready to hear it, even though I had seen it. I guess that makes me a selfish bastard. At least I wasn't the only one, because my brothers and Garrett had given her the cold shoulder, too.

I sat back and listened to Caius explain that he wanted to book us some studio time and get a demo recorded.

"I know that you guys have a large amount of cover material, but do you have any original songs?" Caius asked.

"Of course! Edward is constantly writing something," Emmett offered.

"Really? I would love to hear them. When would you be available to throw down some tracks and vocals?"

I looked up at him blankly. "I'm sorry, what was that?"

"Edward, pay attention, Man. He wants to know when we can get in the studio." Emmett glared at me.

"Sorry! Um, how about on Monday? That'll give me some time to get some songs together and for us to rehearse the new material."

Caius clapped his hands. "Perfect! I'll make the arrangements and give you a call with a time." He stood and shook all of our hands again. "I'm looking forward to working with you all."

I stood up and waved my arm to the door. "I'll walk you out."

Before I could get the door open, however, Gianna was pushing it from the other side. "Oops, sorry. I hope I'm not interrupting?"

"No, Gia, dear, we just finished. Edward was kind enough to see me out."

Gianna clapped her hands. "Oh, perfect. Marcus wants Bella to sing for him. I was wondering if you guys would mind backing her up?"

"Not at all." Emmett stood up and led the way to the stage. We all followed after him, grinning at his enthusiasm.

When we got around to the front of the stage, I noticed Bella sitting on a stool with a Martin acoustic guitar. I watched her tune it as she sang softly to herself.

"Oh, good, you guys get on up there and just follow Bella's lead."

The four of us jumped on stage. I sat down behind the keyboards, while Jasper and Garrett strapped on their guitars and Emmett sat behind his drums. I looked at Bella and nodded with an apology in my eyes.

Bella started out strumming the chords before her soft voice rang out in the room.

_She's beautiful in her simple little way  
She don't have too much to say when she gets mad  
She understands she don't let go of anything  
Even when the pain gets really bad  
Guess I should've been more like that_

We joined in after the first verse, and let the music wash over us as Bella's vocals grew stronger. I could tell that she was singing from the heart.

_You had it all for a pretty little while  
and somehow you made me smile when I was sad  
You took a chance on a bruised and beaten heart  
Then you realized you wanted what you had  
I guess I should've been more like that_

We let the music grow as she ran into the chorus.

_I should have held on to my pride  
I should have never let you lie  
I guess you got what you deserved  
I guess I should've been more like her_

We played until she came to the end, and we backed, off letting Bella finish the way that she began – softly.

Applause broke out, and not realizing that she had the audience she did, I watched the blush rise on Bella's cheeks.

"Well done!" The one named Marcus stepped forward. "That was fantastic, Bella. I think we have just found our next female star."

"Oh, Marcus, I don't…"

"Really?" I asked as I stepped up beside her. "You think that she has what it takes to make it big?"

Marcus nodded, "Absolutely. I can see it now: 'Izzie Swan and Heart Strong World Tour'." He waved his arms as if placing a banner.

"Wait, what?" Bella started. "You want us to tour together?"

"Of course. It'll be fantastic!" Caius agreed.

"Look, don't say anything now. Let us get the studio arranged and get you going on demos so that we can find a label. This will take time, but once we get the ball rolling, it will happen fast," Marcus explained.

"Gianna will contact you about the day and time that we have the studio. Any questions?"

We were all in so much shock that we couldn't say a thing, so we nodded numbly. After they said farewell, the five of us sat down and just stared at each other.

Emmett, Jasper and Garrett broke first, standing and hollering. Bella, however, sat still with her arms around her middle like she was hugging herself.

"Bella?" I waited until she brought her eyes to mine. "I'm sorry. I know that you didn't intend for this to happen." Bella nodded, but kept silent. "Bella…"

"It's okay, Edward. I know it was a shock, and you're right – I didn't plan on this, but I don't want to fight it, either."

"Then don't, Bella. Just think about all the time that we'll get to spend together and the time that we'll have to get to know one another better and explore this thing between us." I smiled at her while I reached out to caress her cheek.

Leaning in to my touch, she smiled gently. "That's sounds nice."

I grinned at her, leaned forward, and pressed a kiss to her lips. When I pulled back, I rested my forehead against hers, excited that things were finally going right, and praying that they stayed that way.

**AN: Teasers will be posted every Monday on my blog. You will also find links to any songs, as well as photos of instruments and stage outfits. Until next time, leave me some love.**


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

Everything was happening so fast. I was caught up in a whirlwind that showed no signs of letting go. I received a call from Marcus Volturi about a week after I had sang for him at Handlebar J's, telling me that he had booked some studio time for me on the following Monday, allowing me just enough time to finish my finals for the semester.

So the first Monday in December found me standing outside of a recording studio, rubbing my sweaty palms against my jeans in an attempt to dry them off. Taking a deep breath, I pulled open the door and stepped into the dim interior. After my eyes adjusted, I followed the instructions that Marcus had given me and followed the corridor until I found the door marked 'Studio 12.' I knocked briskly and then pushed open the door.

"Ah, Isabella, you made it!" Marcus greeted me.

"Hi," I smiled nervously.

"Well, let's get going. Come on in and I will introduce you to the band." Marcus held out his arm, indicating that I should go first.

I walked in to a room that contained a drum set, a grand piano, and several mics on stands with screens on the front. Just looking at everything brought my nerves back to the forefront and yet I was excited as well.

"Alright, Bella, this is Alec Fox; he will be on lead guitar. On drums, we have Felix Maxwell, and his brother, Demetri, will be on bass and doing some of the back-up vocals. The rest of the back-up vocals will be done by Heidi Sims and Jane Littleton."

I walked around and shook all of their hands. "Thanks for joining me. I'm sure it will be a bumpy ride, but I am ready to get to work."

Marcus' voice boomed in the silent room. "Excellent. Let's get started." Everyone moved to their respective places and got settled. "Bella, I took the liberty of choosing a song for you. It's faster paced and different from what I have heard you sing before, but I think it will be perfect for your range." He spoke as he passed out sheet music to everyone.

I smiled at Marcus but pulled something out of my messenger bag. "Actually, Marcus, if you don't mind, I uh, kind of wrote a song and would love it if we could sing it." I handed the sheet music over and watched him look at it.

After what seemed like forever, Marcus looked up at me with a smile on his face. "I love it. I think we should do it. Do I need to ask why or for whom you wrote this?"

I shook my head. "No, I think you understand."

Marcus handed out the sheet music and I smiled when I heard Alec and Demetri break into the opening bars of the song, I was immediately swept up, and didn't even realize that I was swaying with the music until I saw Heidi wink at me. I was in my element – the one place I felt like I was home. We had run through the song a couple of times just to get a feel for it, when Marcus said that Aro was ready.

Aro Volturi, the third member of VMG, was the in-house record producer. From inside the booth, I heard a voice. "Okay, Bella, go ahead and put the headphones on your ears, but leave one uncovered. We are gonna do this for real."

I nodded and slipped the large headphones on my head. They were almost like earmuffs, but were comfortable. I kept one ear open so that I could hear the music, and the other covered so that I could hear myself. The music started and I got in the zone.

_I'm so scared that the way that I feel is written all over my face,  
When you walk into the room I wanna find a hiding place.  
We used to laugh, we used to hug, the way that old friends do.  
But now a smile and a touch of your hand just makes me come unglued.  
It's such a contradiction  
Do I lie or tell the truth?  
Is it fact or fiction?  
Oh, the way I feel for you._

I looked through the window and saw Marcus and Aro both wearing smiles and nodding. I also saw a face that I hadn't seen since the night that changed both our lives – Edward.

_It's so complicated  
I'm so frustrated,  
I wanna hold you close, I wanna push you away,  
I wanna make you go, I wanna make you stay.  
Should I say it?  
Should I tell you how I feel?  
Oh, I want you to know, but then again I don't,  
It's so complicated._

I smiled when Edward gave me a thumbs up. With his encouraging smile, I continued on and belted out that song for all I was worth, even adding a few embellishments here and there.

_Just when I think I'm under control, I think I finally got a grip,  
Another friend tells me that my name is always on your lips.  
They say I'm more than just a friend, they say I must be blind.  
Well, I admit that I've seen you watch me from the corner of your eye.  
Oh, it's so confusing,  
Yeah, I wish you'd just confess.  
But think of what I'd be losing,  
If your answer wasn't yes._

_It's so complicated  
I'm so frustrated,  
I wanna hold you close, I wanna push you away,  
I wanna make you go, I wanna make you stay.  
Should I say it?  
Should I tell you how I feel?  
Oh, I want you to know, but then again I don't,  
It's so complicated._

I hate it  
'Cause I've waited so long for someone like you.  
What do I do?

Oh, Should I say it?  
Should I tell you how I feel?  
Oh, I want you to know, but then again I don't.  
It's so complicated.

It's so complicated.  
It's so complicated.

When we were finally done and Marcus gave me the signal, I took the headphones off and sat down in the chairs next to Heidi and Jane.

"Bella that was awesome. I've never worked with someone who has a voice like yours," Jane complimented.

"Thanks, Jane. I have to admit that I feel a little out of my element."

"You did great, Bella. I would never have been able to tell that you were nervous." Heidi smiled.

I smiled, but before I could speak, Aro's voice filled the room. "Okay, Bella, here comes the playback."

I closed my eyes and let the music and the sound of my voice wash over me. It was exhilarating – hearing my voice sing a song that I had written. When it was over, I opened my eyes and met Edward's. He must have come in the room while I was lost in the lyrics.

"You sounded beautiful, Baby," he whispered.

"Really?" I wondered.

Edward reached out to take my hands in his. "Bella, I know that we have a lot to talk about and we will, I just don't want you to let anything that I have or haven't said make you think that you aren't talented."

I nodded and smiled at him, but looked away when I heard the door open and Marcus come in, followed by Aro.

"Bella that was magnificent. You really wrote that?" Aro asked.

I saw the shock that crossed Edward's face before I looked over at the man who had just put my voice down on tracks.

"Yeah, I wrote it a few days ago. Why? Is there something wrong with it?"

"NO!" Aro and Marcus shouted at the same time.

I laughed. "Okay."

"What was your inspiration, Bella?" Heidi wanted to know.

I looked over at her, grinned, and then looked back into the eyes of the man in front of me. "It's complicated," was all I said.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I had been in studios before, laying down tracks for demos, but never any that looked as professional as this one. Yesterday when I surprised Bella down at her session, I had been caught off guard. I had no idea that she could write like that. When I listened to her words, I had known that they were meant for me. It told me so much and I knew then exactly what song we were gonna record at our session today.

"Edward?" Jasper waved his hand in front of my face.

I shook my head and looked at him. "Yeah, what?"

He laughed. "Where were you, Bro?"

"Sorry, Jazz, I was just thinking about…"

"Bella?" Emmett suggested.

I snapped my eyes to his. "Yes, ass. So? What of it?"

"Ed, man, you have treated that girl like shit ever since we met Caius and his brother," Garrett informed me.

"I know," I agreed as I hung my head in shame. "I've apologized to her. Hell, I showed up here yesterday for her session and spoke to her again."

"I heard she kicked ass," Emmett commented as he inspected the drum set inside the studio.

"She did!"

We all turned at the booming voice in the doorway. "Hey, Marcus."

"Hey, fellas. Caius couldn't be here today, so I am gonna fill in if that's alright."

I shrugged and looked at the guys, who just shrugged in agreement.

"Excellent. So, Edward, I hear that you are the song man for this group. What have you got for us today?"

I handed Marcus the sheet music that I had stayed up late working on the night before and watched as he read it over. He looked up at me and smiled, and then walked out while the guys and I got set up.

"Okay, guys, let's give it a shot," Aro called over the intercom.

Emmett counted it off and then softly led us in until Jasper and I joined him on our guitars. Garrett soon followed on bass.

_Before we met I was free  
I never had to worry about anyone but me  
Now that boy is gone and in his place  
Is a man who needs to hold you night and day  
So if I stumble, if I fall  
Forgive me I'm just learning as I go along_

_See me through, see me through  
This aching heart has come so far  
To be with, see me through  
With angel eyes, just look inside  
At all this love I never want to lose  
See me through_

I closed my eyes and lost myself in the lyrics and let the emotions wash over me. They were stronger than I had even fathomed.

_I know sometimes I let you down  
But I'm still getting used to having you around  
And if I ever make you cry  
There's nothing I won't do to make things right  
I'm not perfect and that's for sure  
A little time is all I'm asking for_

I opened my eyes and looked in the window to see the glistening brown eyes of my inspiration. I had no idea when she had started to affect me so strongly, but I didn't want her to let go.

_See me through, see me through  
This aching heart has come so far  
To be with, see me through  
With angel eyes, just look inside  
At all this love I never want to lose  
See me through_

_See me through this mask I wear  
Well, I'm almost there, you know I care  
I am the man you always thought you knew_

_See me through, See me through  
Oh see me through  
yeah, yeah  
Oooh, Ooh see me through  
Oh we're almost there, can't you see that  
I'm almost girl I'm almost there  
This mask I wear  
Girl, I'm almost there, I'm almost there  
See me, See me through this mask I wear,  
I'm almost there  
Oooh, girl  
See me through, Ooh, yeah _

When the music faded away, I kept my eyes on Bella's and I watched the tears stream down her cheeks. I wanted to go to her, but I knew that I had to remain professional first.

I watched as Marcus turned to her and said something while he handed her a tissue. She nodded at whatever it was he said. He turned to look at me and jerked his head in Bella's direction, so I swiftly removed my headphones and ran through the door and straight to my girl.

Marcus and Aro left almost as soon as I had her in my arms, giving us some privacy.

"I'm so sorry, Baby. I never meant to…"

I was cut off by Bella's lips pressing to mine. They were soft and warm, and I found myself kissing her back with a passion that I had hidden from her until now. I needed to get her out of here, or I was gonna take her with an audience, and she deserved better.

Reluctantly, I pulled away, but rested my forehead against hers. "Bella, I…"

"I know, Edward. It was a shock. I get it."

I pulled back to look into her eyes. I could see the love swimming in them, but this was not the place for a confession. "Let's get out of here."

She nodded, and lacing her fingers with mine, we walked out into the starry night, heading to the place that would change our relationship forever.

**AN: Hmm, I wonder where they are going. Until next time, leave me some love.**


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**EPOV**

I lay in my bed and stared at my ceiling. The room was silent save for the breathing of the beauty that lay next to me sleeping while my mind ran in circles.

Two weeks. It had been two long weeks since the day that we had recorded our demo and still no bites. Caius explained that it might take a while, but I wasn't gonna win any awards for my patience.

Giving up on getting any sleep, I eased out of bed so as not to disturb Bella, and headed to the kitchen. I pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge and flipped on the radio. The words that I heard next sent water spewing from my mouth.

'_Here it is folks. You've requested it, and I finally got it. See Me Through by our very own HeartStrong. Enjoy!'_

"Holy Shit!" I screamed and cranked the volume on the radio. There was nothing better than hearing your own voice coming over the airwaves. I forgot that everyone else in the house was still sleeping and didn't contain my whoops of joy.

"Edward! What the fuck man?" Emmett growled as he stumbled into the kitchen. "It's three in the fucking morning!"

"Emmett, listen! They're playing our song on the radio!" I leapt at my brother.

"Get off me, Dude." Emmett shoved me away and reached to turn the music even louder.

The sounds of the loud music and our hollers of excitement brought Garrett, Jasper and Bella running to where we were dancing around the kitchen.

When my eyes landed on Bella, who was standing in the background letting us have our moment, I immediately went to her and picked her up in my arms. I spun the two of us around as Bella laughed.

When I finally set her back on her feet, she had tears running down her cheeks. I cupped her face in my hands and gently wiped her tears away. "Baby, it's happening."

"I know, Edward. I'm so happy for you." Bella smiled at me through her tears.

"It'll happen for you, too," I encouraged.

"I'm sure it will, Sweetie, but even if it doesn't, I won't be disappointed. I never wanted this to start with. Not for me, anyway."

I was taken aback. I thought that after her recording session and everything that we had talked about, Bella was finally on the same track as me. I thought she wanted to perform. "Bella, what are you saying?"

"I'm saying that I'm happy for you." She gently removed my hands from her cheeks and walked back down the hall to my bedroom, closing the door behind her.

"Edward?"

I shook my head and looked over at my brothers and cousin. "Yeah?"

"What was that? Is she not happy for us?" Emmett wanted to know.

"No, she is." I turned and walked into the living room.

"Then what was that, Ed?" Garrett asked, following me.

I sank down onto the sofa and looked up at him. "I was trying to reassure her that it was going to happen for her, too. She said that…that if it didn't, she would be fine because she never really wanted it to begin with."

"What? That's just…ridiculous," Jasper said as he sat on the floor beside the couch.

"Why would she waste Marcus' time like this if she never wanted it?" Emmett wondered.

"I'm not." Bella's voice sounded from behind us.

I turned and noticed that she was fully dressed and had her bag on her shoulder. "You're leaving?"

"Yes, but let me say something first." Bella waited until the four of us nodded at her to continue. "Do you all remember the night that Gianna came to hear you guys sing?" We all nodded. "Do you remember how angry you were when you realized that they wanted me too?" We all ducked our heads and looked ashamed. "That's why I never wanted this."

I watched as Bella walked forward and pressed her lips to mine. It felt like a goodbye. "Bella…"

"The only thing that I wanted after that first night was you, Edward. Everything else has just been a bonus." With one more kiss, I watched her walk to the door. "Anything else doesn't matter, Edward. I can be happy without fame, but if being famous meant that I got to be with you, then I was willing...for you."

She closed the door behind her and I wondered if I would see her again.

'_Next up is another newbie to the music world. I'm sure that we will hear more from her in the future. For its radio debut, here's Complicated by Izzie Swan.'_

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I walked slowly down the steps, hoping that he would come after me, but knowing deep down that he wouldn't. One thing I had learned about Edward over the last few months was that he wasn't a fan of confrontation.

I made it to my car and had just started it up and turned on the radio when I heard the announcement followed by my voice.

With tears in my eyes, I turned up the volume and blindly pulled my cell phone from my purse.

"Hello?"

"Kate! I am so sorry to wake you up, but you have to turn on the radio!" I screeched.

"Jeez, Bella!" Kate grumbled. I heard some rustling around and then screaming. "Holy shit! Bella you're on the radio! Daddy!"

"Kate, leave Dad alone." It was too late for my warning, though, as I heard our father in the background yelling at Kate and stomping his feet.

"Kathryn Renee! What are you thinking yelling like that when it's almost four in the morning?"

"Daddy, listen; Bella's on the radio!" Kate interrupted before our father could say anything else, causing me to giggle.

The silence was deafening as my family and I shared the moment. "Kate, let me talk to Dad."

"Bella, baby, you sound wonderful. Your mother would be so thrilled." Charlie said softly.

"Thanks, Daddy. I'll see you later." I hung up my phone and leaned my head back on the head rest.

'_There you go folks__— two up and comers from our own__little town. I'm sure that we haven't heard the last of them.'_

I guess without really wanting to be, I was on my way.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

"Dude, Edward, you are a fucking idiot."

I looked up at my brother and had to fight the urge to hit him. "Thanks."

"He's right! Get off your ass and go get your girl!" Garrett added.

"Edward, we're all tired of watching you push her away. You are gonna fuck up and really lose her this time, ya douche!"

"Yeah, yeah...I'm going."

I got up off the couch and headed to the front door, praying that I wasn't too late. I realized that someone must have been listening, because her car was still in the drive when I stepped outside.

I made my way down to it and lightly tapped on her window, trying not to scare her but doing just that. I smiled apologetically and indicated for her to roll down her window.

"Jeez, Edward! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" Bella asked her hand clutching at her chest.

"Can we talk for a minute?" Bella nodded and I stepped back so that she could get out of the car.

"So talk."

"I'm sorry. I keep fucking this up, Bella. I just thought that since you had been in the studio already, you wanted this as much as I did." I ran my hand through my unruly hair. "Has that changed?"

Bella sighed and placed her small hand over my heart. "Edward, do you remember the night we met?" I nodded, looking in her eyes. "I didn't want to sing that night. Alice, Rose and Kate told me what you guys did and backed me into a corner. I never imagined that our table would be chosen. I never imagined that you and I would have the connection that we did and still do."

"I didn't either, Bella. I don't want to let go of that either."

"When Kate tricked me into going to Handlebar J's that night, I was so angry. Not just at her, though — I was mad at all of you. Kate and Garrett for tricking me, but also at you."

I was shocked. "Me? Why?"

"Because in every conversation that we had the month prior to that night, you never once mentioned that a scout was coming to see you. You never asked for my help. I would have never known that I was needed or even wanted because you wouldn't communicate with me."

"Bella, I'm not good at this."

"Good at what, Edward? Talking? Singing? What?" Bella asked , her voice rising with her frustration.

"The only thing that I am good at is singing. It's the only way that I know how to really express how I feel, what I want and need. This stuff..." I waved my hand between the two of us, "...relationships — women, have always been hard for me."

"Oh bullshit, Edward! That's a total copout. You're scared that someone might actually see the real you — the you behind the music. Well guess what, Edward? I see him. I see the man that you hide behind your guitar. I always have."

I was shocked. No one had ever taken the time to see me. I've had years to perfect the art of hiding, and in two minutes, Bella had seen through all of my bullshit and thrown it at my feet. I only had one problem left...now what?

"What do you want from me, Bella? I can't change who I am and I don't think I want to."

"Then you're a coward. Instead of taking a chance and letting someone else in, you would rather be alone."

I watched as she huffed in annoyance or anger. I'm not sure which, but I didn't like it.

"I'm done. I want someone who is gonna be there for me and with me, not someone who is gonna tuck tail and run the minute that things get too emotional. I've had that already. Jacob was an emotionless bastard who used me as a doormat. I refuse..._refuse_ to let you do it, too."

I grabbed her arm when she tried to turn away. "So that's it? You're just gonna end this before we get started?"

Something in me broke when she looked up at me with tears shining in her eyes. "No, Edward. You've already made that choice."

Bella stepped up, pressed her lips to mine, and then turned and got back in her car. She drove away before I could snap out of it and stop her.

"Dammit!" I kicked at the rocks that littered the driveway. "FUCK!" I yelled as I shoved my hands in my hair, pulling it in my frustration.

"You did it again, didn't you?"

I turned and saw Emmett, Jasper and Garrett standing on the porch, sympathy written all over their faces. I walked up the stairs and shoved past them, not acknowledging them at all. I headed straight to the music room. I screamed in frustration before deciding that I had a better outlet.

I crossed the room, picked up my guitar, and began strumming, getting lost in the notes. It wasn't long before I had written a new song. I just needed the guys to help me get my message across.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I didn't want to be here. I didn't want to be at the bar and listen to anymore bullshit spew out of his mouth, but Marcus had insisted. That was why I walked into Handlebar J's, flanked by my sister and our best friends, unsure of what the night would bring.

"Bella, are you okay?" Alice asked.

I looked at her and smiled. "I'm fine. Let's just get this over with."

We found a table and sat down. The band was already up on stage and they sounded fantastic. It was just too bad that Edward looked like shit. That made me feel bad, but I had to stick to my guns. If he wasn't gonna let me in, I wasn't gonna waste my time.

They were about halfway through their set when I heard Edward speak into the microphone.

"This next song is going out to a very special woman tonight. She recently told me that I don't open myself up to anyone or anything. Well, Baby, this is me opening up to you."

Emmett started out the drums and I watched as Edward rang in on his Fendor before stepping up to the mic.

_It's three am and I finally say_

_I'm sorry,_ _for acting that way_

_I didn't really mean to, make you cry_

_Oh, Baby, sometimes I wonder why_

_Why does it always have to come down_

_To you leavin'_

_Before I'll say 'I love you'_

_And why do I always use the words _

_That cut the deepest_

_When I know how much it hurts you_

_Oh, Baby, why do I do that to you_

_I know I'd never let you walk away_

_So why do I push you 'til you break_

_And why are you always, on the verge of good-bye_

_Before I'll show you, how I really feel inside_

I had tears streaming down my face as I listened to his confession.

"Bella, you need to get up and go over there. Now!" Kate insisted, all but pushing me out of the chair.

I wiped my eyes, slowly got up, and walked to the stage. As soon as the last notes drained away, Edward hopped down and met me halfway. He carefully traced my cheek and gently wiped away my tears.

"I love you, Bella. I am so sor..."

I flung myself into his arms, cutting off his words with my lips and kissing him with all of the love I had. Neither one of us heard the cheers that surrounded us and only broke apart when oxygen became an issue.

I looked into his green eyes and, seeing the love reflecting back at me, I finally found my words. "I love you, too."

**AN: Okay so the ILY's are out there. I know this was an emotionally charged chapter, but things are gonna get better for a little while. It's time to record some albums. Leave me your thoughts and some songs you want to see in here.**


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV (**_**present day**_**)**

I was so lost in the past that I never heard the ringing of the phone. When I felt Carmen's hand on my shoulder, I jolted and came back to the present.

"I'm sorry, Miss Bella. Miss Alice is on the phone."

I nodded. "Carmen, I thought I told you to stop with this 'Miss' crap."

"Sorry, ma'am. It's engrained I guess." Carmen handed the phone to me and turned to go back in the house. She stopped at the door and turned back to me. "Would you like some more tea? You still sound a little hoarse."

"Thank you, Carmen, that would be nice." I watched her retreat back into the house, and then lifted the receiver to my ear. "Hello, Ali."

"How are you feeling, Bella?"

"I'm fine, Alice. How are you? Jasper?" I wanted to steer the conversation away from the reason that I _knew_ she had called.

"We're good, but I didn't call to talk about us. I heard that Edward wrote to you. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Alice," I sighed. "He wants me to meet him at the studio on Saturday. I'm guessing that you guys haven't told him the real reason behind my hiatus?"

"No, Bella, it's not our place. If you want him to know, then you can tell him."

I was unsure as to whether I wanted Edward to know what had sparked my sudden departure from the music industry or not. I knew that I would have to tell him eventually, but I wanted to wait. I would have to do it soon, though, since the press would certainly be getting wind of it. Marcus could only keep things under wraps for so long.

"I know that I should tell him, Alice, but..."

"But what, Bella?"

"I can't talk about this right now, Ali. I have to go. I'll call you later." I disconnected before she could protest. As I looked out over the rolling hills of my home, I was once again lost in the past.

**~~STM~~**

Things between Edward and I were never easy, but always passionate. Whether we were singing together, writing songs, or making love, it was always all in and anything but easy.

"Edward! Dammit, where the hell is my shirt?" I hollered down the hall at his retreating back.

"How the fuck should I know, Bella?" he tossed over his shoulder.

"ARHH!" I screamed in frustration.

"Sweetheart?" I turned to see Edward in the doorway, my shirt hanging off of his finger. "Is this what you are looking for?"

I walked over to him and yanked it away before shoving it into my suitcase. "I am not in the mood for your games, Edward. We are leaving first thing in the morning. Tonight, you guys are doing your farewell performance at J's, and I want to make sure that I am ready to go!"

"Relax, Baby, things are gonna be fine. Marcus and Caius have set up this tour so that we are always together. It'll be okay." Edward wrapped his arms around me from behind and pressed his chest to my back.

"I'm not worried," I lied. Of course I was worried. We had just finished recording our first albums and had only released a couple of songs a piece. How Marcus and Caius thought that a small tour—even if it was in small venues—was okay, was beyond me.

"You know you can't lie to me, Bella," Edward informed me as he started placing kisses along my neck. He kissed his way down to my pulse point, nipping and sucking my flesh into his mouth.

I let my head roll back until it was laying on his chest as he continued his assault. "Edward...we don't have...time for...this," I whispered breathlessly.

He paid me no mind and began bunching my skirt in his hands and pulling it up around my waist. I shuddered as I felt his fingers skim the top of my panties before slipping inside the fabric and lower into my slick folds.

"Baby, always so ready for me," Edward murmured as he slipped a finger inside me, curling it toward that spot that only he could reach.

"Edward, hurry," I cried as I ground into his hand, searching for my release.

Keeping up the rhythm that he started, I never noticed when he removed his other hand from my waist. It wasn't until I heard his zipper that I figured out his intentions. He entered me swiftly, causing me to cry out in pleasure.

"Edward!"

"Fuck, Bella, you feel so good, Baby."

Knowing that we were short on time, he set a fast and furious pace, all the while pinching and rolling my clit, sending me careening to the edge. When he felt my pussy clench around him, he let go with a guttural cry.

"Fuck!"

As our breathing returned to normal, I finally got my wits about me. "Dammit, Edward! I told you we didn't have time! Now we're late."

Edward chuckled and pulled his pants up. "I can't bring myself to be sorry, Baby."

I turned to face him, grinning at his satisfied smirk. I leaned forward and kissed his lips before biting his bottom one. "Me either, but let's go."

**~~STM~~**

We arrived at Handlebar J's with five minutes to spare. You would think that with the looks I was getting, _I_ was solely responsible for our tardiness.

"What?" I shrugged my shoulders. "Blame him!"

"Oh, don't worry, Bella, we do." Emmett stood by the door with his arms crossed.

"But not for the reasons you think, Sweets," Jasper piped in.

Before Garrett could throw his two cents in, a high pitched squeal pierced the air.

"Eddie! You're finally here!"

I looked at Garrett, "Are you fucking kidding me?"

Edward groaned and pulled me closer to his side. "Don't even think about leaving me," he whispered. "What the fuck are you doing here Lauren?"

"I needed to see my, Eddie. Why is _she_ here?" Lauren sneered in my direction.

"_She_ belongs here. _She_ is wanted here. _You_ are not!" Edward growled.

"Aww, Eddie, you know you don't mean that," Lauren simpered.

I wanted to gag, but held firm and stayed by Edward's side. I did, however, let him know how I was feeling by digging my nails into his side.

"Actually, Lauren, I do. Bella and I are together, have been for a while now. It's time that you accept that and stay the fuck away from us."

"Whatever, Eddie. It won't last, and when she's gone, I'll be waiting."

Lauren walked to Edward and—right in front of me—kissed him. Actually, it looked more like she was slobbering on him, then she was gone.

"Seriously! What the fuck is that whore's problem!" I screamed. "I am gonna rip every extension out of her bleached head!"

Emmett grabbed me, yanked me away from the door, and all but threw me onto the couch. "Emmett!"

"Chill, Laila Ali. It won't do any good to go getting in her face," he chuckled.

"Yeah, B, don't worry; we've got it covered," Garrett informed me.

Deciding it was better to keep my mouth shut and let it roll off my back, I sat on the couch where Emmett threw me and sulked for a while.

"Are we ready?" Edward asked five minutes later.

A chorus of 'let's do this!' echoed around the room, and then they walked out on stage just as James announced them.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

We were halfway through our set when I spotted Lauren making her way toward the stage. Her tits were swinging freely, and I just knew that I was gonna end up with a faceful of lace in about ten seconds. Ready to put a stop to her shit, I stepped up to the mic.

"We want to send this next song out to a very special member of the audience. She has been coming here since we started and has always told us how much she loves us."

"Especially you, E," Garrett piped up as rehearsed.

"Thanks, Gar. Anyway, Lauren, this song is for you!" I took my place behind the keyboard and started singing.

_I haven't been to church since I don't remember when_

_Things were goin' great 'til they fell apart again_

_So I listened to the preacher as he told me what to do_

_He said you can't go hatin' others who have done wrong to you_

_Sometimes we get angry, but we must not condemn_

_Let the good Lord do his job, and you just pray for them_

_I pray your brakes go out runnin' down a hill_

_I pray a flowerpot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the head like I'd like too_

_I pray your birthday comes and nobody calls_

_I pray you're flyin' high when your engine stalls_

_I pray all your dreams never come true_

_Just know wherever you are, Honey, I pray for you._

The clapping and laughter that came from the audience was awesome. However, the best part was the anger that was emanating from Lauren. Her face was red and she was clenching her fists, and I was pretty sure she was ready to stomp her foot.

_I'm really glad I found my way to church_

'_Cause I'm already feelin' better and I thank God for the words_

_Yeah, I'm goin' to take the high road_

_And do what the preacher told me to do_

_You keep messin' up and I'll keep prayin' for you_

_I pray your tire blows out at 110_

_I pray you pass out drunk with your best friend_

_And wake up with his and hers tattoos_

We continued to play and sing and have a great time. The audience was really getting into and had started singing "pray for you" every time we did. Lauren was so pissed off that she did in fact stomp her foot, and with a mighty screech, she left the bar.

After our set was complete and we said our final goodbye, the guys and I retreated to the dressing room.

"I can't believe that's the last time we'll ever be on that stage," Jasper commented as he plopped down on one of the couches.

I sat beside him and leaned back. "I know. It's gonna be so weird to wake up in a different city after tomorrow."

"How's Bella holding up?" Garrett asked.

I chuckled. "She says she's fine, but you know how she gets. She was flitting around the house earlier looking for a shirt and screaming at me because it wasn't where she thought it was."

"She'll be fine," Emmett stated. "Besides, Rose, Kate and Alice will be there."

I bolted upright. "What?!"

"You didn't know?" Garrett asked. I shook my head. "Yeah, Marcus and Caius hired them. Alice is our costume/wardrobe person, Kate is gonna to help with PR, and Rose will be doing Bella's hair and makeup."

"Huh." I sat back and looked around. "I guess we should go—early flight and all."

We walked out into the near empty bar and found our ladies waiting on us. They started clapping and whistling, causing us to laugh.

I held my arm out to Bella, and she ran up to me. I pressed a kiss to her lips and then pulled her to my body. "You ready to go?"

"Yeah, I'm tired."

I turned to my brothers, "Hey guys, we're gonna roll. See ya in the morning."

"Later, Bro!" they hollered to our retreating backs.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I rolled over and stared at the clock on the nightstand. The bright green numbers shining back at me read 2:00 am. I closed my eyes and rolled to my other side.

"Baby, what are you doing?" Edward mumbled.

"I can't sleep." I gave up and got out of bed, pulling on Edward's discarded T-shirt. "I'm gonna go in the living room."

I watched as Edward sat up and rubbed a hand over his face. "Do you want me to come with you?"

I leaned down and kissed him. "No, go back to sleep." I turned and walked to the door.

"I love you, Bella."

I turned and looked at the man that was already half asleep, still sitting up. "I love you, too."

I walked out to the living room and plopped down on the couch, grabbing the remote and flipped on the television. That eerie white glow filled the room, casting shadows in the corners.

"Bella?"

I jumped and turned to see Kate standing behind me. "Did I wake you up?"

"Not really. I couldn't sleep."

"Me either."

"Are you nervous?" Kate sat down in the chair beside me.

"Not really. It's more...I don't know...fear, I guess. This isn't the path I chose."

"Bella, do you remember Mom?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Not really. I was only three when she died."

Kate smiled. "I'll be right back."

I watched her walk out of the room and then sat and waited for her to return. I didn't wait long.

"Look at these," Kate said as she handed me a stack of old vinyl records. _Renee Higgins_ was written on all of them.

"Who is Renee Higgins?"

"That was Mom's stage name, Bella. Mom sang right up until I was born, then she left it all behind."

I stared at the items in my hands and finally realized what my father had always tried to tell me. He had always said that my mother had given me her gift, but I never understood what that meant...until now.

I don't know how long I sat there with the records and my thoughts, but it must have been a while. It wasn't until I felt the couch dip beside me and an arm around my shoulder that I realized Edward had joined me. He didn't ask questions, just held me against him as I processed this new information.

**AN: Ok, so a little comedy, a little lemony goodness and they are off. Leave me some love. I could really use some song ideas, so lay 'em on me. 'Til next time!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

It had been almost a month since we had started this little tour, and while I was having fun, I was also exhausted. Small venues or not, this was tiring. Although, I was thrilled about the reception I had received.

The guys, however, had a _huge_ following. I mean half naked girls, bras flying onto the stage during every performance and women and young girls trying to sneak backstage. Garrett, Emmett, and Jasper played it off like it was no big deal, although I think they secretly loved the attention. Edward, however, behaved nothing like I would have expected a man in a relationship to act. He encouraged it and in return, encouraged my anger and discontent.

I was ready to go home when I got the call. It was late on a Friday night, and we had just performed at a sleazy little hole in the wall in some little nowhere town that I couldn't remember the name of. I had just gotten out of the shower when Edward poked his head in and said that Marcus was on the phone.

"Hey, Babe, Marcus is on the phone for you."

I watched his eyes rake over my naked form and sent him a wink. "Thanks, I'll be out in a second."

I quickly toweled off and wrapped myself up in my silk robe, then left the bathroom. The ones on the bus left a lot to be desired, but at least we weren't paying for a hotel every night.

I walked to Edward and took my cell phone from him. "Thanks, Sweetie."

He grinned, kissed my lips and then turned to leave. "I'll give you some privacy," he called over his shoulder as he stepped out the door.

I lifted the phone to my ear and began speaking. "Hey, Marcus. What's up?"

"Bella, are you sitting down? If not, then you need to."

I laughed and curled up on the corner of my couch. "Okay, I'm sitting; what's going on?"

"Okay, well, it seems that there were some scouts in the audience at your last two shows and they want you, Bella."

I sat up straight. "What do you mean 'they want me' Marcus? Who wants me?"

"Miranda Lambert's reps called me this morning and they want you to open for her on her new tour."

"WHAT!? Are you fucking with me, Marcus?"

Marcus' laughter filled my ear. "No, Bella, I am serious. You made it, girl!"

"Oh. My. GOD!" I jumped up from the couch and did a little shimmy. "I have to go tell the band! I have to go tell Edward!"

"You do that, Bells, but get packed because you leave in the morning. Make sure that nothing is left behind and that the bus is ready first thing tomorrow."

"I will. And Marcus?" I waited until I heard him speak. "Thanks...for everything."

"You deserve it, Bella. Now go tell your man!"

I hung up the phone and did a little dance that would put Alice's excitement to shame. Then I ran to the back of the bus and threw on some clothes before going out and hunting down Demetri and the rest.

I found them at the end of the bus line, hanging with Emmett and the guys and also a bunch of groupies.

"Demetri!"

He turned at the sound of my voice and ran over. "What? Bella, what's wrong? You're shaking!"

I stopped to catch my breath and then looked up at him with a huge smile. "Marcus just called. We are going to tour with Miranda Lambert!"

"No fucking way! Are you shitting me?" Demetri let out a whoop and then picked me up, spinning me around.

When he sat me down, we ran over to the rest and explained what was going on. I looked around, but couldn't find Edward anywhere.

"Where's Edward?" I asked no one in particular.

Jasper responded, "I don't know. He was here a minute ago."

I looked around but still didn't see him.

"Maybe he's on the bus," Garrett suggested.

I nodded and began walking in that direction, trying to ignore the dread that was settling in the pit of my stomach. I got to the bus and reached for the handle on the door, only to find it locked. I knocked, "Edward!?"

Suddenly the door swung open, and standing before me was a young girl with long brown hair and brown eyes. She was wearing nothing but one of Edward's T-shirts, her naked legs peeking out from the hem. I could have sworn it was the same one he had on a little while ago.

"Oh my God! You're Izzie! I love your music!" she began fangirling at me.

"Who the hell are you? Where is Edward?" I demanded, shoving her aside and walking onto the bus just as Edward walked out of the back, shirtless.

"Hey, Lexi where did..." His voice cut off when he saw me. "Bella?"

**EPOV**

Seeing Bella standing in the doorway with Lexi standing behind her, in my T-shirt, I just knew that this looked bad.

"Bella, Baby, this isn't..."

"Save it!" Bella growled and stormed out the door.

The last ten minutes flashed through my mind like a movie reel...

_After I left Bella's bus to give her some privacy while she talked to Marcus, I joined the gang and the crowd that had gathered. I had only been with them for about five minutes, when this cute girl walked over to me asking for my autograph._

"_Oh my God, I love your music! Can you please sign this for me?" She stepped closer to me, reaching out a notebook and pen. Her foot must have caught a stray crack, because she was suddenly sprawled out at my feet, in a puddle left behind by the rain._

_I chuckled, then kneeled down to help her. "Are you alright?"_

"_I'm fine. Just a little wet and embarrassed." _

_I helped her up and then introduced myself. "I'm Edward, but I guess you knew that."_

"_I'm Alexandra, but everyone calls me Lexi."_

"_Well, come on, Lexi. Let's get you something dry to put on."_

We had been on the bus for barely three minutes, but it was just long enough to cause my world to tip on it's axis.

I shoved past the stunned girl and ran after her. "Bella stop! It isn't what you think!"

Bella spun around and glared at me. "Really, Edward? There is a half-naked girl in your bus, wearing the T-shirt that you are lacking! Now tell me, how is that NOT what I think?"

Everyone around us had gone quiet. They were looking back and forth between the two of us and the frozen girl who had stepped off the bus.

I reached out to take Bella's arm, but she jerked away from me. "Bella, please. Let's take this inside and talk about it."

"I am not going anywhere with you." She waved her arm around at the crowd. "I think that they can tell what's going on between the two of you by your state of dress. And I am still waiting on your explanation."

"She fell in a puddle and I was trying to find her something dry to wear. That is it!"

"Wow!" Bella raised her eyebrows at me. "You must think that I am pretty stupid." She scoffed at me. "I guess I was though, wasn't I? I believed you when you told me that you wanted me here, that you were happy that I was given a career along with you. I believed you when you told me you loved me. But it was nothing but lies."

"I do love you! Dammit! Why do you always think the worst of me?"

"Because, Edward, all you have ever done is push me away. Well guess what, Sweetheart? Now you have pushed too far. I'm done. Goodbye, Edward!"

I watched as she spun around and all but ran away from me. "FUCK!"

I felt someone walk over and stand beside me. "I'm sorry, Edward. I didn't mean to cause you any trouble."

I looked down at the now dry and re-dressed Lexi, and tried to smile; it didn't work. "It's not your fault. Keep the shirt."

I turned and walked back to the bus. I went straight for the well-stocked bar and poured myself a shot of vodka before knocking it back and pouring another one.

"That's what you're gonna do? Drink?"

I turned and faced my brothers and cousin. "What can I do? She wouldn't listen. I told her the truth and she didn't believe me." I knocked back another shot. "I'll let her cool off and then talk to her in the morning."

"She won't be here in the morning, Edward," Jasper informed me.

I looked up at him sharply. "What are you talking about?"

"That's why she came in here. She wanted to tell you about Marcus' call," Emmett said.

"Well someone had better tell me!"

"She got called up, Edward. She'll be joining Miranda Lambert on tour," a voice said at the door.

I watched as Alice, Kate and Rosalie stepped inside. "Seriously? That's great."

"It was...until you shattered her," Rosalie accused.

"Yeah, Edward, what the fuck were you thinking?" Kate hissed.

I looked at the group of people that were staring angrily at me. "I was thinking that a girl had fallen into a puddle and needed some dry clothes. I was thinking that for once I would be a nice guy. Trust me that will never fucking happen again." I poured another drink, tossing it back before continuing. "If Bella won't listen to the truth, then there is nothing left to say. Obviously she doesn't love me as much as she professes. She took something innocent and twisted it in her mind. She had her mind made up the minute that little girl answered the door."

"Can you blame her, Edward? I mean the visual was quite convincing," Garrett broke in.

"I was in the fucking bathroom, taking a piss, when Bella knocked on the door. I had it locked because that girl was barely sixteen and didn't need you fuckers walking in on her. It was NOT what any of you think! By the way, I am glad that you all have such a great opinion of my character."

"Edward..."

"Save it. I'm going for a walk." I grabbed a shirt and pulled it over my head before I stepped off the bus and right into Felix.

"Sorry. Umm, listen," he started, "we all heard what was said, and I just want you to know for the record, I believe you. I saw her fall in that puddle and I know you were just being a nice guy. Give Bella some time, she'll come around."

I nodded. "And if she doesn't?"

"I don't know, man. I'll keep in touch. Let you know where we are."

"Thanks, Felix. Do me a favor, will you?"

"Name it."

"Just uh...just tell her that I love her. That I always will."

"You got it. Later."

I slumped down on the ground and let myself do something I hadn't in years. I cried.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I sat on my bed in the back of the bus and let the tears flow. Jane and Heidi had tried to comfort me, but I was inconsolable at this point. Another man that I loved had disappointed me. I didn't understand it. Edward was supposed to be different—he was supposed to be the one. Turns out he was the one...the one who would cheat on me.

I lay down and looked out the window in time to see Felix walk toward the other bus just as Edward walked out of it, bumping into him. I watched them talk for a minute, and then saw Felix leave. I saw Edward slump down and put his head in his hands. When he looked up, I thought I saw tears on his face. But that couldn't be right, could it? He cheated on me. Why was _he_ hurting?

"Bella?"

I wiped my face and sat up. "Yeah?"

The door opened a crack and Felix stuck his head in. "You got a sec, Bells?"

I only nodded, not trusting my voice yet. I watched as he pushed the door open further and sat on the edge of the bed.

"Bella, you know that I hate to get involved in other people's business, but I feel that I have to here." I watched him pause and gather his thoughts before he continued. "Edward is telling you the truth. That girl..."

"Stop, Felix. I don't want to hear it right now. Even if what you are saying is true, which I don't believe, Edward has been pushing me away from the start. It was only a matter of time," I sighed. "Do me a favor. Can you make sure that everything is loaded? I wanna leave in the next twenty minutes. I'm gonna go say goodbye to my sister and then we are out of here."

"Alright, Bella. I don't like it, but...I'll do it." Felix stood, but before he walked out the door he said, "He told me to tell you that he loves you. Always."

I choked on a sob and whispered to the air, "I love him, too. Always."

**AN: And there is out misunderstanding. Now I know that some of you are probably gonna be pissed at Bella for not believing Edward and for not listening to Felix, but she will get there, I promise. Leave me some love. 'Til next time.**


	10. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**EPOV**

I took a pull from the bottle of jack that seemed to be a permanent fixture in my hand since Bella had left. I remember the day that her bus pulled away like it was yesterday, even though almost six months had passed.

_I watched her hug Kate and the two of them cry as they held each other. I couldn't take it anymore, knowing that she was leaving us...me._

"_I'll miss you, Bells. Be careful and call me when you can. I love you."_

"_I will. I love you, too." _

_I watched as Bella whispered something in Kate's ear causing her to nod. Then with a final hug, she sprinted to her bus and was gone._

Thinking of that day always made me angry, and I flung the bottle against the brick wall in front of me.

"Edward!"

I turned and looked at Alice. "What you want, Pix?" I slurred.

"Edward, you have to stop this." Alice walked up to me. "You are gonna destroy yourself, and in the process, bring the band down with you."

"I don't give a fuck, Alice. Nothing means shit anymore. Bella took it all with her!" I tried to get up from the ground, but kept falling over my own feet. "Don't you get it, Alice? Bella took everything when she left—my heart and my music."

"I don't believe that. You need to use what you have and find your outlet. Bella has."

My head snapped up at her words. "What are you talking about, Alice?"

"Bella is back in the studio working on her new album. I've heard some of the songs. Edward, she still loves you."

Alice dropped her bomb and then walked away, leaving me with my thoughts.

Hours later, I had managed to stumble my way back to our bus and fallen into the shower. Feeling somewhat human, I sat down across from my brothers and cousin.

"Edward, you can't keep doing this to yourself or us. You either need to get some help, some therapy, or I am gonna put you in rehab," Emmett ordered.

I nodded. "Maybe Dad knows of a good therapist. Someone that wouldn't mind speaking with me over the phone, when we're traveling, that is."

"He gave me this number for you," Jasper said as he slid a piece of paper across the table.

"Ok, I'll call in the morning. We're almost done with the tour, so I'll make the appointment for when we get home."

"Good," Emmett, Jasper and Garrett all agreed and then got up to go to bed.

I felt the bus come to life and sat back to watch the scenery pass me by. Tomorrow was our last show and then we would be heading back home. I wanted to sit down and write, but every time I tried, I ended up looking at blank paper. I had meant every word that I said to Alice earlier. When Bella left, she took my inspiration with her.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

After I left Edward and the rest, including my sister, I became very depressed. I couldn't sleep and barely ate. Heidi and Jane threatened to tell Marcus if I didn't get my shit together, and I knew that if he found out, my touring would be over. As much as I had fought about having this type of life—this career—in the first place, the truth was, I wanted it. Especially after I met Miranda Lambert.

At first I did the whole fangirl thing and wanted her autograph, but then I took a step back and realized that she is a normal woman just like me. It was after two months that I broke down and confessed everything that had happened to her.

"_Izzie..." Miranda started._

_I held my hand up. "Izzie is my stage name. My friends call me Bella."_

_She smiled then and continued. "Bella, have you ever listened to Felix?"_

_I shook my head. "The pain and anger were still too fresh. Now, I am angry. I want to know why I wasn't enough."_

_Miranda looked at me for a minute and then spoke, "Maybe it wasn't what you thought. What if Edward was telling you the truth?"_

"_Then why would he give her the shirt off his back? Why would he go inside the bus alone? There are too many easy solutions that he didn't go with. Not to mention that he loved it when women threw themselves at him. It was like a game to him."_

"_I'm sorry, Bella. I really am. Have you tried writing out your feelings?" _

_I shook my head. "I have some ideas, but nothing that I have put to paper."_

_She smiled and stood up, going to the door of my dressing room. "Maybe you should."_

So here I was sitting, six months later, finally back home and getting ready to lay down tracks at the studio. I had a notebook full of lyrics and pages of music. I was playing and singing when I heard a voice behind me.

"That would make a great duet."

I turned and smiled at Aro. "You think? But who with?"

Aro shrugged. "There are a lot of possibilities. Let me grab one of the singers in the next room and see what he thinks."

"Okay," I smiled and turned back to the piano.

I was shocked when Aro walked back in, especially when I saw who was behind him. I grinned and knew in that moment, that I was writing a number one hit.

**~~STM~~**

I had just finished dinner with my dad, Kate, and Garrett when I got the call from Marcus. I screamed out my excitement, causing my family to come tearing into the room.

"What's the matter, Bella?" my dad asked as he came over and gripped my chin in his large hand.

I looked at my father with tears brimming in my eyes. "That was Marcus. I was nominated for two ACM awards!" The whoops and hollers of my family rained down over me before I looked at Garrett. "HeartStrong was also nominated for two. We were both asked to perform."

"Are you serious?" Garrett wanted to know.

"That's what Marcus said. Caius was calling um...you guys, while Marcus was talking to me."

"Do you know which ones?" Garrett asked as he sat down on the couch, pulling Kate with him.

"Umm...yeah, I was nominated for _New Female Vocalist of the Year_ and _New Artist of the Year_. You guys were nominated for that one, as well as _New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year_."

"Wait a minute. You guys were nominated for the same award?" Kate wondered. At my nod, she continued, "Well, shit! Who the hell am I supposed to root for?"

We all got a good laugh from that. After a while of sitting and talking—celebrating—we called it a night. I went back to my apartment alone. For the first time, I really felt it.

When I stepped off the elevator, I turned left toward my apartment. As I got closer, I noticed something sitting in front of my door. Instantly on alert, I looked around to see if anyone was behind me. I saw nothing and no one. I looked back at my feet and picked up the vase and its beautiful purple flowers. I brought them to my nose and breathed in their scent. They smelled like springtime.

I clutched the vase to me and unlocked my door. Once I flipped on the light, I searched for a card, finally finding one amongst the blooms. I plucked it from its hiding place and ripped open the envelope.

_Congratulations._

I didn't recognize the writing or the type of flower, so after I had changed into my pajamas, I sat down with my laptop and opened a Google search window.

I searched flower meanings and found a picture of the exact flowers that I had received. When I saw what they meant, tears formed in my eyes because I knew who they were from—Edward.

_HYACINTH (PURPLE) - I am Sorry, Please Forgive Me, Sorrow_

Maybe it was time for me to listen to Felix. I just didn't know if I was ready.

**~~STM~~**

"Ugh! Are you serious? Come on, Tanya, I am not wearing that!" I screamed in frustration at my stylist.

When I separated myself from HeartStrong, I also lost Rose, Alice, and Kate. Marcus had hired Tanya Denali to be my stylist, and she handled all of my wardrobe and makeup. Irina Volturi, Marcus' daughter, took over PR.

"Why not, Bella?"

I stared at her in disbelief. "Really? Tanya, come on! That looks like a bell." The irony wasn't lost on me, but seriously, putting Bella in a bell...nope, not happening.

Tanya huffed and threw her hands up. "Fine!" She walked over to the rack again and pulled out another dress.

I scrutinized the dress carefully. It was a long chiffon floral print dress in white. The floral pattern covered the top and bottom, with flowers vining in the middle. It was a halter top with a ruched keyhole bust. The crisscross beaded empire waist added a bit of shimmer. It was backless, with only one beaded strap across the back. It was perfect.

"I love it, Tanya!"

"Okay, great! That'll be the dress that you wear on the red carpet. Now, here is your performance dress!"

Tanya went to another rack and pulled out a blue and tan, one shouldered cocktail dress. It would be comfortable enough on stage, and the little embellishments would sparkle in the spotlight.

I nodded at Tanya and earned a smile. "Now for shoes!"

I groaned again and threw myself onto the couch. "I hate shoes," I grumbled.

Tanya handed me a pair of pewter, multi-leather three inch heels designed by Guess, and I loved them on sight. When I slipped them on, they fit like a glove and were amazingly comfortable.

"I love these, Tanya." She looked at me in surprise. "What? I do like heels sometimes, just not the monstrosities you _usually_ try to put me in."

"Okay, well here are your performance shoes." She handed me a pair of cowgirl boots in the same shade of blue that was in the dress. There was a blue, turquoise and tan embroidered pattern going up the boots, and a chain embellishment around the ankle and heel.

"Okay, great! Thanks, Tan. I have to get to rehearsal." I left the outfits and shoes with her, and ran out to my car to head to the studio.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I sat at the piano in the studio while Jasper, Emmett, and Garrett messed with their instruments. I was trying to figure out the perfect song to perform. We had been rehearsing plenty of numbers, but nothing conveyed what I needed it to.

I was just about to give up when an idea came to me. I looked at the guys and grinned. "Hey, Gar, can you go call Caius for me, please?"

It took me half an hour to explain to Caius what I wanted, and another four hours for him to make it possible. When everything was squared away and all the T's had been crossed and the I's dotted, the guys and I got to rehearsing.

When I was finally satisfied with the sound, I looked at Aro and we got set to lay down the tracks. This would be the first single from our sophomore album.

**~~STM~~**

The night of the awards show arrived, and to say I was nervous would have been an understatement. I wasn't nervous to perform. I was nervous about seeing Bella. Actually, I was scared to death. What would I say to her? Would she even talk to me?

I stepped out of the shower and toweled myself off. I tried, unsuccessfully, to tame my hair, but it just fell into its usual disarray. Leaving it, I quickly shaved and then walked out to my bedroom. Alice had dressed us all, not matching, but according to our own style.

I was gonna be wearing a new pair of Levi's and a green button down shirt, pairing it with my black cowboy boots and a black blazer. I was snapping on my watch as I walked down the hall and found my family and band mates waiting for me.

"The limo should be here in a few minutes," Garrett told me.

I nodded. "Are you guys okay? You look a little nervous."

A chorus of 'We're good' rained on me. Before I could say anything else, a horn sounded outside, signaling that the limo had arrived. "Let's do this."

After we had all piled into the limo, I took a good look around me. The guys were all paired off, and for the first time, I really felt like a seventh wheel.

When we pulled up to the theater, I was relieved to climb out of the limo. However, when my eyes found her chocolate ones across the red carpet, my relief left me and trepidation took its place.

**AN: Do you think that they will talk? Who is Bella singing with? What will Edward's reaction be to her song? And who will win? 'Til next time.**


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

My eyes met his across the red carpet and I froze. Felix must have felt me tense, because he turned me to face him.

"Bella?"

I couldn't look away from those piercing green eyes. I wanted so much to run up to him and throw myself into his arms, but I wasn't the one that was wrong. I mean, I know what I saw. Didn't I?

I began questioning everything a few weeks ago, but I just chalked it up to loneliness. I had also written away all the anger. The hurt was still there, but it was slowly easing. Until I looked into his eyes, at least. Then it all came flooding back.

I blinked, breaking myself away from his intense gaze, and looked at Felix. "What?"

"Are you okay?"

I looked back over to where he was and noticed that he was now joined by my sister and the rest. "I'm fine."

Looking away from Felix, I squared my shoulders and then walked toward the man that I desperately wanted to run to and from.

"BELLA!" Emmett's voice boomed in the din.

I was suddenly swung up into a bone crushing hug. "Emmett, can't...breathe."

"Oh." He gently set me back on my feet. "Sorry, Bells. You look great, by the way."

"Thanks, Em." I turned and greeted Jasper, Alice, Rose, Garrett and Kate before bringing my gaze to Edward.

When our eyes met, I saw something in his that threw me. Regret and...love? He didn't say a word, but leaned down and pressed his lips to my cheek in a gentle caress that caused me to shiver. I closed my eyes and breathed in his scent.

Almost as soon as he had closed in, he was gone, and I immediately missed him.

"You look beautiful, Bella."

I blushed, but kept my eyes on his. "Thanks. You don't look too bad yourself."

"Bella!"

I turned and saw Marcus waving me over. I held up a finger and looked back at the group. "I have to go. Good luck tonight."

Spinning on my heel, I walked away, not allowing myself to look over my shoulder for one more chance to see him.

**~~STM~~**

We were about ten minutes into the award ceremony when Luke Bryan, who was co-hosting the event with Blake Shelton, announced HeartStrong.

"This group burst onto the scene late last year, but has taken the world by storm. Their first album has recently gone double platinum, and I am sure that this is only the beginning. Here tonight with the new single from their recently released album, please welcome...HeartStrong."

The curtain parted and Edward started in on his guitar. Jasper soon joined him on the steel. The spotlights came up when Edward stepped up to the mic.

_So you sailed away into a grey sky morning_

_Now I'm here to stay, love can be so boring_

_And nothing's quite the same now_

_I just say your name now._

_But it's not so bad_

_You're only the best I ever had_

_You don't want me back_

_You're just the best I ever had._

I could feel my eyes welling up. I loved this song. I knew that they were doing it as a crossover and thought that they sounded great. Then I listened to the lyrics a little closer.

_So you stole my world, now I'm just a phony_

_Remembering the girl, leaves me down and lonely_

_Well send it in a letter_

_Make yourself feel better._

_But it's not so bad_

_You're only the best I ever had_

_You don't want me back_

_You're just the best I ever had._

When he got to the bridge, I knew what he was trying to say.

_And it might take some time to patch me up inside_

_But I can't take it so I, I run away and hide_

_And I might find in time that you were always right_

_You're always right._

After their song ended, I quickly wiped away my tears as I felt Felix squeeze my free hand. I looked over to where he was sitting beside me. "I'm fine," I whispered.

"Bella? Are you ever gonna let me tell you the truth?" Felix questioned.

I looked away from him and back to the stage as the show went to a commercial break. "I'll listen. After we are done here." I turned back to him. "I'll let you tell me everything."

Felix nodded and we turned back to the stage. We had to get through the next three awards and then we were to head backstage and get ready for our performance. Right before that was the award that I was nominated for. I was going up against Jana Kramer and Sunny Sweeney, so I didn't think I would win.

"This year, country music gained three very talented young women. One wanted to know why her old boyfriend would come back into her life. Another thought it was complicated, while the third saw him from a table away," Martina McBride started. "This year's nominees for _New Female Vocalist_ are..."

I tuned it out, not really believing that I had a chance in hell of winning. It wasn't until Felix shook me that I realized the winner was about to be announced.

"And the ACM goes to...Izzie Swan!"

I was shocked. I stood on shaky legs and hugged Marcus before walking to the stage. I had to pass Edward on my way up there, and he actually stood up and hugged me.

"Congratulations, Baby." He kissed my neck and then sat back down.

I blushed and continued my way to the stage. I climbed the stairs and walked toward one of my idols. Martina McBride handed me my award and then stepped away so that I could make my speech.

"Wow! Umm...I never thought in a million years that I would be here. There are so many people to thank. My agent, Marcus, for believing in me and taking a chance. My band for always having my back. My family, my friends...thanks for always being there to support me. I love you guys. To the person who inspired _Complicated_—and he knows who he is—you have no idea how uncomplicated I wish things were. Also my mother, who passed her talent on to me. There are probably more, but I am drawing a blank right now. Thank you."

I followed the presenter and the trophy person off the stage and stood behind the curtain in shock, but not just from winning—Edward called me baby.

While the show went to another commercial break, I found my seat again, the shock and excitement wearing off as the nerves set in. It was almost time for me to sing. What would he think of my song?

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

She won! I just had to hold her. I needed her to know that I loved her, that I missed her, and that I needed her. I thought that my song had done that. Kate had told me she saw her sister crying, so I couldn't help but hope that maybe there was a chance.

I knew that her performance was coming up soon—I had seen the seat fillers come in and take over where they were sitting. No sooner had the thought entered my mind, Luke Bryan was back onstage introducing her.

"This next performer showed us that the line between love and friendship is complicated. Her first album went platinum, and her new record is already selling fast. Here with a special guest...Izzie Swan."

The curtain parted and there she was. I heard her lead guitarist start playing an easy guitar riff, and then her sweet voice joined in with the rest of her band.

_Another shot of whiskey please, Bartender_

_Keep it coming 'til I don't remember at all_

_How bad it hurts when you're gone (no no no no)_

_Turn the music up a little bit louder_

_Just gotta get past the midnight hour (uh huh)_

_Maybe tomorrow it won't be this hard_

_Who am I kidding?_

_I know what I'm missing_

As she sang, I noticed that her voice had taken on a smoky quality but got stronger as she sang. As I listened to the words, I finally understood how much I had hurt her.

_I, I had my heart set on you_

_But nothing else hurts like you do_

_Who knew that love was so cruel (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

_And I waited and waited so long_

_For someone who'll never come home_

_It's my fault to think you'd be true (yeah, yeah)_

_I'm just a fool_

_(Yeah)_

The audience began to cheer when Blake Shelton walked out on stage and joined her. I couldn't help but be proud at how far she had come in such a short period of time. I was about to get up and leave, but Alice had a vice grip on my arm.

"Don't you dare walk out, Edward!" Alice hissed.

I shook her hand off but stayed in my seat and listened to her sing about her pain. I reached my breaking point right after she sang the bridge.

_I should have let it go_

_Held my tongue_

_Kept my big mouth shut_

_'Cause now everything is just wrong_

_Wrong, wrong_

I couldn't listen anymore, I got up from my seat, and despite the protests from Alice and the rest of them, I left the theater. Bella's words following me out the door.

_I'm just a fool_

_A fool for you_

_I'm just a fool_

_And, I had my heart set on you (uh)_

_But nothing else hurts like you do_

_Who knew that love was so cruel (yeah, yeah, yeah)_

_And I waited and waited so long_

_For someone who'll never come home_

_It's my fault to think you'd be true (yeah, yeah)_

_I'm just a fool_

She wasn't the fool. I was.

**~~STM~~**

I found myself at some seedy little dive on the outskirts of town and about two miles from my house. I had been knocking back the shots like a man drowning, and before long, I was so slobbering drunk that the bartender poured me into a cab and sent me on my way.

The next morning I woke with a pounding head and felt like my mouth was full of cotton. When I stretched, I heard a groan beside me. _Oh, God! Please, no!_ was the first thought to run through my head.

I turned and looked, and sure enough, there lay a blonde woman. I blinked my eyes and tried to clear away the haze so that I could see her clearly. _Fuck my life! It's Lauren._

I eased out of bed, careful of the whore lying beside me and the ache in my head. I walked to my bathroom and located a bottle of aspirin, swallowing three with water from the tap. I brushed my teeth next, and then stepped into the shower. I had just stepped out and wrapped a towel around my waist when the bathroom door was pushed open.

"Eddie..." Lauren whined. "Don't you want a shower with me?"

"No, Lauren. I want you to get your fucking clothes on and get the fuck out of my house."

"That's not what you said last night, Eddie," she purred.

"I was drunk, Lauren! Now get the fuck out of here before I call the cops and have you arrested for trespassing and stalking."

"Whatever, Eddie." I watched as she tossed on her clothes. "I told you that one day that little mouse would be gone and that I would be here."

I wanted to vomit. I couldn't believe that I had gotten so drunk that I fucked Lauren...again.

"Emmett!"

A second later he appeared at my door. "What's up?"

"Would you mind taking out the trash? Oh, and you might want to check her for spare keys or anything else that might not belong to her."

"You got it, Bro." Emmett grabbed Lauren by her elbow and escorted her out of the house. Her screeching, I am sure, woke up the neighbors.

I looked around and was glad to find the empty foil wrapper on the floor, but sickened to find the used condom laying next to it. At least I knew that I had protected myself—from something, at least. The words to Bella's song came back to me then, and the pain of what I had done and become settled deep in my chest.

I walked to the dresser where my wallet was and pulled out the number that Jasper had given me. Reaching for my phone, I immediately called to set up an appointment. I needed to fix me, and then I could fix me and Bella.

"Hey, Bro...oh, sorry," Jasper said as he walked into my room.

I held up a finger and spoke into the receiver. "Yes, that will be fine. I will see you tomorrow morning at nine. Thanks, Dr. Siobhan." I hung up and looked at my brother. "What's up?"

"Why'd you leave last night?"

"Jazz, you heard the words to her song. Can you honestly tell me that wasn't about me?"

"No, but..."

"Okay, then. Jazz, I never realized how much I hurt her. That was a very rude awakening. I needed to get out of there because I couldn't breathe."

"Okay, I get that. What about Lauren?"

"Jazz, I don't remember a fucking thing about last night except leaving and finding some whole in the wall to drown my sorrows. I woke up with her beside me."

"Damn! Please tell me that you covered up!"

"I did. I found the used condom on the floor this morning. Thank God I was smart enough to put on a hat in my inebriated state."

"Okay, Bro. Well, let's hope that this Dr. Siobhan can help you."

"I hope so, Jazz. I want to be a better man. Not just for me, but for you guys, and especially for Bella."

"Are you gonna tell her about..." Jasper waved his hand at my bed.

"I don't know. I know that I need to come clean about it, but I don't want to hurt her any more than I already have." Lord knows, I've hurt her enough.

**AN: I know that you are all hating Edward right now. Please bear with me. We have to get through some bad, before they can make up. If I wasn't planning on an HEA I wouldn't have started this story. 'Til next time. Leave me some love.**


	12. Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

I resumed my seat after my performance and tried to enjoy the rest of the show, but couldn't help noticing during a commercial break that Edward was no longer sitting with the group. I couldn't figure out what would make him leave _before_ his award was even announced.

I didn't really have time to concentrate or ponder why he had left, because the award for _New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year _was being announced.

"...and the ACM goes to, HeartStrong."

I clapped along with the rest of the audience and watched as the three guys made their way up to the stage—Edward noticeably not among them. I listened as they gave their speech and then watched Jasper accept Edward's statue. When they were done, they left the stage.

I sat in the audience and enjoyed the other performances until it came time to announce the last award that I was nominated for. I tuned out the little skit that the presenters went through, but when Felix once again tapped my arm, I paid close attention.

"This year's _New Artist of the Year _ACM goes to...Florida Georgia Line."

After the rest of the awards were presented, I followed the flow of people out of the theater and then posed for more pictures and granted an interview with the people from ET.

"Izzie?"

I turned and saw Nancy O'Dell standing before me. "Hi," I smiled.

"Izzie, how does it feel to win the award for New Female Vocalist?"

I grinned. "It's surreal, actually. I never dreamed that this is what I would be doing when I graduated from college."

"We noticed that the lead singer of HeartStrong hugged you on your way up to the stage. Can you tell us about that?"

I looked to where Marcus was standing and saw him discreetly nod his head. I looked back at Miss O'Dell and smiled shyly. "Edward Cullen and I were in a relationship."

"You say _'were_.' Are you still close?"

My smile dropped and I could feel the emotions well up. I knew that if I didn't get away from her I was going to cry. Thankfully, Marcus came to my rescue.

"Miss Swan is not prepared to answer any questions about her relationship with Mr. Cullen at this point. Thank you for the interview."

I was quickly led toward my waiting limo and immediately slipped inside, breathing a sigh of relief. Only once everyone was seated inside and the car was moving, did I allow myself to wonder where Edward had gone and why.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I sat in the waiting room of the doctor's office and took in my surroundings. There were paintings hanging on the walls that I supposed were trying to give the rooms occupants a peaceful feeling. Visions of hillsides covered in wildflowers and waves crashing on the shore, did nothing to ease my jumbled mind.

As I sat waiting for my name to be called, I tried to avoid the stares of the receptionist. She hadn't taken her eyes off of me since I sat down. Normally I would be flirting with her and trying to get her number, but that was until Bella.

"Mr. Cullen?" I looked up at the sound of my name. "The doctor is ready for you."

I rose from my seat and gave the woman a tight smile before walking in the direction that she pointed. I paused once I reached the door that she had indicated, then I knocked softly.

"Come on in!"

I slowly eased open the door and crossed the threshold to what I hoped would be my salvation.

"Ah, Mr. Cullen, come in and have a seat." The woman behind the desk smiled before rising to shake my hand. "I am Dr. Siobhan."

"Yeah, uh, hi."

"Well, let's get started." She shut the door behind me, leaving me no choice but to sit down and try to get comfortable.

The doc sat in a wingback chair close to the couch I was sitting on, and pulled out a pen and pad of paper. "So, Edward, why don't you tell me why you're here."

I took a deep breath and cleared my throat. "I'm here because I want to figure out why I destroy everything good in my life."

"Okay, let's start there. Why do you think that you destroy the good things in your life?"

"Well, I am in love with this woman, and it seems that everything I do hurts her. In the beginning of our relationship, all I did was keep her in the dark, only giving her pieces of myself. Once I did finally open up, my band got noticed. I loved the attention that I got from the fans, and I guess Bella couldn't handle that. It was almost like she was just waiting for me to screw up—so I did. I made a mistake and allowed a fan onto my bus, and although it was completely innocent and nothing at all happened, I pushed her too far away and lost her."

Dr. Siobhan was taking notes and looking at me as I spoke. "Hmm, this must be Izzie Swan. Am I correct?" I nodded, wondering how she knew that. "I don't think you've lost her yet, Edward. However, I do think that you have your work cut out for you."

"What to do you mean I haven't lost her yet? She left me. She won't talk to me—she'll barely even look at me. I know that the whole situation has put a strain on the relationship she has with her sister and best friends, too. So tell me, Doc...how haven't I lost her?"

"Edward, I am gonna show you something." She pulled out a remote and aimed it at the TV I never noticed in the corner of the room. Suddenly, the screen was filled with Bella's face. It was an interview that she had given the night of the awards show the week before. I heard the interviewer ask her about me and watched the tears fill Bella's eyes. "She wouldn't still have those emotions six months later if you had lost her, Edward."

"How did you get that?"

Dr. Siobhan turned off the TV and placed the remote on the table. "When your father told me that he was recommending I take your case, he explained to me that Bella was the main reason that you would be coming in. I searched for anything that I could find about the two of you, but came up empty handed. Until the night of the awards, that is. When I saw her do this interview—well, let's just say that I love my TiVo."

I cleared my throat, trying to clear the lump that had set up residence there. "So help me, Doc. I need her in my life."

"Okay, let's start at the beginning. Tell me about your parents, your siblings."

So I talked. I told her all about my family, friends, and upbringing. I filled that first hour with every anecdote that I could remember from my youth. I had just gotten to my senior year in high school when she stopped me.

"Time is up, Edward. I think we've made good headway here, but I want to see you again soon." She wrote something on her calendar and then handed me an appointment card. "I think we are about to dive into what started your commitment issues, and I want to be able to devote an entire hour to that, okay?"

"Thanks, Doc. See ya." I stood up and made my way out of the office and past the slutty receptionist.

I drove home and wondered what Bella was doing right then.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

_I would've loved you anyway_

_I'd do it all the same_

_Not a second I would change_

I took a step back from the microphone, not liking the way the song was coming out.

"What's up, Bella?" Demetri asked as they all stopped playing.

"I don't know. I just think that I am singing this all wrong. When I wrote it, it just felt different."

"What do you mean by different?" Alec wanted to know.

I shrugged. I knew exactly what I was feeling when I had written the song. For some reason, though, I was having trouble getting back to those feelings. "Let's take a break."

"Okay," they all muttered.

I made my way out of the studio and just started walking. Before long, I found myself at a park. I watched children playing, families sharing picnics, and lovers walking hand in hand. Finding a bench, I sat down and just watched. And I wished. I wished that Edward and I had made it. I wished that he loved me as much as I still loved him. I didn't even realize that I was crying until I tasted the saltiness of the tears as they ran over my lips.

Wiping them away quickly, I made my way back to the studio. I felt like I was finally ready to get the tracks down with the proper feelings behind the words.

I walked in and went back to my headphones, then looked up at Aro and spoke into the mic. "Take it from the top."

"You got it, Bella." Aro smiled and queued up the machines.

Alec began the guitar riff and Felix soon joined him on the drums. Demetri would be on the steel guitar this time. I let the music flow over me and the words just flowed from my heart.

_If I'd've known the way that this would end_

_If I'd've read the last page first_

_If I'd've had the strength to walk away_

_If I'd've known how this would hurt_

_I would've loved you anyway_

_I'd do it all the same_

_Not a second I would change_

_Not a touch that I would trade_

_Had I known my heart would break_

_I'd've loved you anyway_

_It's bittersweet to look back now_

_At mem'ries withered on the vine_

_But just to hold you close to me_

_For a moment in time_

I was finally happy with the way the song was sounding, and when I got to the bridge, I really let it out.

_And even if I'd seen it coming_

_You'd still've seen me running_

_Straight into your arms_

_I would've loved you anyway_

_I'd do it all the same_

_Not a second I would change_

_Not a touch that I would trade_

_Had I known my heart would break_

_I would've loved you anyway_

_I would've loved you anyway_

"That was great, Bella," Jane complimented after the last note had died away.

"Yeah, Bells, what did you do?" Felix asked. "That was completely different from the first couple of takes."

Before I could answer, Aro announced that the playback was ready. I sat on a stool and closed my eyes, letting the song and the emotions wash over me. When it was done, I opened my eyes and noticed that Heidi and Jane were wiping tears from their cheeks.

"Bella, that sounds great. If you don't want any changes, I think that we can call this one done," Aro said from the control room.

I smiled and gave him two thumbs up, then turned to the group. "You guys up for more?"

They all nodded in agreement and we got back to work on the songs that we had been rehearsing all week.

**~~STM~~**

My album had been in stores for two months and had already gone platinum. I was ecstatic. I never dreamed that I would be where I am.

Now, tonight, I was standing backstage listening to Felix tapping out my intro beat while the fans shouted out my name. The house lights were dimming and the spotlights shining and flashing.

My first solo tour. The first city. The first show. I strode out on stage and waved to the crowd. I didn't say a word—just started singing when the music picked up.

_I'm lookin' for a lover_

_Who can rev his little engine up_

_He can have a '55 Chevy_

_Or a fancy little pick-up truck_

_If he's got a cool Cadillac_

_With a jacuzzi in the back I'm in, oh yeah_

_'Cause I'm a classy little chassis_

_Who's a-huntin' for a heart to win_

_Oh, but if you wanna win it_

_There's no speed limit_

_Just go faster, faster, don't be slow_

_Rev it up, rev it up 'til your engine blows_

_You win my love_

_You win my soul_

_You win my heart_

_Yeah, you get it all_

_You win my love_

_You make my motor run_

_You win my love, yeah you're number one_

I was having the time of my life. Being under the flashing lights, hearing the crowd screaming my name, I felt like I was in heaven. There was just one piece that was missing, but I tried not to dwell on that fact. If I did, I would go crazy.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

"Edward, last time you were here, we talked about your family. How you grew up, your friends and how you got into music. We stopped just before we got to your senior year in high school. You looked relieved that I stopped you there, and I want to know why."

I looked at Dr. Siobhan and took a deep breath. "That was the year that _she_ walked into my life."

"Bella?" Siobhan asked.

"No. Jessica."

"Okay, let's start there."

I sat back on the plush couch and sighed. "I'll never forget the day she walked into my Spanish class. She was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen—up to that point, anyway. When she sat down beside me and smiled, I knew that I needed to talk to her. It wasn't until the last class of the day that I actually got the nerve to speak to her, though."

"_Hi, I'm Edward. I think you sat beside me in Spanish class."_

"_Hi. I'm Jessica. I've been waiting for you all day," she giggled._

_I ran my hand through my hair. "Yeah, uh, sorry."_

"_Don't worry about it."_

"_Would you, uh, maybe like to go see a movie with me?" I had never been this nervous before._

"_I'd like that." _

_We made plans, and from that day on we were inseparable._

"So what happened?"

"I came home from a gig that summer. The guys and I had gotten noticed halfway through the year, and had been hired to play some clubs." I waved my hand dismissively. "Anyway, I came home and immediately went over to see her. We hadn't seen each other in a week, and talking on the phone just wasn't the same." I had hated being away from her. "When I showed up at her house, her parents were just leaving but had let me in. I ran up the stairs, excited to see her after so long. When I made it to her door, I heard moaning. I pushed it open to find that Jessica was riding one of my 'friends'—her head thrown back in passion." I could still see them in my mind.

"Edward, what happened after you found her?"

"I went crazy. I screamed and threw things across her room. I wanted to know how she could do that to me. She had always told me that she wanted to wait, that she wasn't ready to go all the way. I mean, we had fooled around a few times, but nothing like what I caught her doing. I later found out that it had been going on the entire time she was with me. After that, I vowed that I would never let anyone get that close to me again. I kept that vow until Bella, and I somehow _still_ managed to fuck that up."

"Well, we are gonna work on that," Dr. Siobhan promised.

**AN: Now we know what Edward's issue is…sort of. I forgot to mention that last chapter Jana Kramer actually won the ACM that I said Bella did. Florida Georgia Line won the award that HeartStrong wins in this chapter (both actually). **

**Links to songs and pictures can be found in my FB group. Momma's BookCase. Come on over and request to join if you haven't already. 'Til next time, leave me some love.**


	13. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

_**4 years later**_

**BPOV**

I coughed into my fist again. I had been hacking for the last month with no relief. I reached for the mug of hot tea and honey that always seemed to be within arm's reach.

"Bells, are you sure that you feel well enough to perform tonight?" Heidi questioned.

I nodded. "I'm fine, Heidi. It's just a little tickle."

"Bella, you've had that little tickle for the last three months. It's not getting any better," Demetri commented his arm draped around his fiancée.

Everyone in my group had paired off. Demetri and Heidi, Alec and Jane. Even Felix had found someone. He and our PR director, Irina, had started dating last year. I was the only loner, still pining for a man that I hadn't seen in four years.

"I'm fine. We've been touring and recording non-stop, so I'm bound to get a little run down," I tried to reassure them.

I made it through that night's performance, but when I woke up the next morning, in a new city, I had no voice. Nothing. Not even a whisper or a squeak. I immediately grabbed my phone and sent Marcus and Irina a text.

_We have a problem! ~ B_

_What's wrong? ~ I_

_What is it? ~ M_

_I have no voice. No noise whatsoever! ~ B_

It didn't even take ten minutes before there was a commotion at the front of my bus. I got out of bed and pulled a sweatshirt on over my T-shirt and pajama pants. I made my way upfront and found Irina and Marcus—still disheveled from sleep—standing in the doorway.

"Say something!" Marcus ordered.

I opened my mouth and tried to speak, but not even the slightest sound was heard.

"Shit!" Irina fell into a chair that was near her. "I need to call the arena. Daddy, you need to call a doctor."

I watched Marcus as he pulled out his cell and immediately called someone. Not knowing what else to do, I sat down and stared at them quietly. I hated to disappoint my fans, but it wasn't like I had control over my voice. I pulled out the notebook that I kept at my table for when a song came to mind, and began writing a statement for the press.

An hour later, I was sitting in a chair while a Dr. Banner inspected my throat. I didn't like him—he gave me the creeps—but he had rushed here when Marcus had called him. He felt along my throat, checking my lymph nodes for swelling, and hummed to himself. When he was finished with his examination, he sat in the chair across from me.

"Well, Miss Swan, you have laryngitis. I also think that you have a bacterial infection, but without swabs, I can't tell you that for sure. I am going to prescribe antibiotics and rest. No singing, speaking, or using your voice at all for the next two weeks. We don't want to damage your vocal chords permanently."

I looked over to Marcus and Irina with a panicked expression on my face. We were gonna have to cancel six shows.

"Calm down, Bella. Everything will be fine. The fans will all be given rain checks for the next time that we come through here. I'll make a statement to the press, too. It'll be fine." Irina tried to comfort me.

"Don't worry about it, Bella. Just worry about yourself and getting better," Marcus told me.

I just nodded my head, shook the doctor's hand, and walked back to my bedroom, throwing myself across my bed. I heard Irina calling for a press conference and Marcus making flight arrangements. I was going to be heading home to rest and convalesce. I hoped that my voice got better soon.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I sat in my hotel room sipping on a coke, strumming my guitar and watching the evening news.

"_In entertainment news, Izzie Swan had to cancel six shows on her 'Play Harder' tour. It seems Miss Swan is suffering from laryngitis and a bacterial infection. Her publicist informed the press that Miss Swan is heading home to rest and get better, and hopes to return to her tour in two weeks' time."_

My phone chimed with a new text as soon as the report was over, and I wondered which of my band mates it was.

_Did you see the news? Alice is worried. ~ J_

_Why? It's not like they're talking to her. Ever since she missed Kate's wedding, Bella has been an off-limits topic. ~ E_

_Kate is understandably__pissed. That's her sister. ~ J_

_J, I am not arguing this with you. Kate knew Bella's tour schedule and planned her wedding on a day that she knew she couldn't be there. She has no right to be pissed. ~ E_

_I guess you're right. Are you worried about her? ~ J_

I sighed. I missed Bella every day. I was finally starting to feel worthy of her, and thanks to Siobhan, I finally understood that my commitment issues stemmed from what Jessica did to me. I had been afraid to let anyone in for fear that they would cheat on me, too. That was also why I had used women. Love 'em and leave 'em, before they can leave me.

_Of course I am. Get some rest. We leave at dawn. ~ E_

I shut off my phone, turned off the light, and crawled under the covers. I found a movie on the tube and set the sleep timer, drifting off before I could put the remote down.

Bright and early the next morning, I followed our security detail through the lobby of the hotel to the waiting limo. Our fans were camped outside the hotel in hopes of getting a glimpse of us.

I climbed in and waited for the rest of the group. I stared out the window, wondering what the day would bring and how Bella was doing. I decided to shoot Felix a text, but didn't have the chance because the door opened and everyone else piled in.

"...she's probably faking it. I mean, come on! Laryngitis? How fucking hard is it to fake losing your voice?" Kate was grumbling to Alice as they climbed in.

"Actually, Kate, your sister has been sick for a while. From what I understand, this is just the worst it has gotten so far," I snapped.

"How do you know?" Emmett wondered.

"Felix and I keep in touch. Bella has had a nasty cough for the last three months. Felix says that she has been drinking hot tea like it's water."

Alice reached out and touched my arm. "Tell Felix to tell Bella that I am thinking about her."

I smiled and nodded, but snapped my head up at Kate's huff. "What the fuck is your problem, Kate?"

"You know exactly what my problem is, Edward! My own sister missed my wedding!"

"She was on tour! You knew that, but didn't give a shit! Bella told you what her schedule was—she faxed a copy to your dad and gave one to Caius. You could have made it possible for her to be there, but you chose to be a bitch!"

"Edward..." Garrett looked at me.

"What, Gar? You can't honestly sit there and tell me that Kate made any effort for Bella to be there."

Garrett shut his mouth and looked down, knowing that I was right.

"Do you have any idea how much it is gonna cost her to cancel those six shows? Not just her reputation, but in dollars? We are talking about a lot of money. Think about that, Kate, when you get angry about her not coming to your wedding. Stop being selfish." It was the longest speech I had given in months, but I was tired of Kate's attitude toward her sister. I was tired of the bullshit.

After my speech, the ride to the airport was blissfully quiet. I did manage to send off a quick message to Felix, checking on Bella. He hadn't responded by the time that we were taking off, so I shut my phone down and sat back to relax for the flight.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

My home was spotless—not a speck of dust or dirt on any surface. I had read all the fan mail that had been forwarded to me, responded to some emails, and had even written a letter to my dad. I was flipping through the channels on the television, when I heard Carmen walk in the door.

"Miss Bella, the mail is here."

I dropped the remote and was off the couch in a flash, scurrying in her direction. "Thanks, Carmen," I whispered.

I flipped through the envelopes...junk, junk, bill...I stopped when I came across a coral colored envelope. Flipping it over, I wondered who it could be from. I ripped it open and pulled out the paper inside.

_Mary Alice Brandon_

_and _

_Jasper Whitlock Cullen_

_Request the Honor of your Presence_

_as they are Joined in Marriage_

_on Saturday, the Twenty-Ninth of February _

_Two Thousand and Twelve_

_at_

_Three o'clock in the Afternoon_

_at_

_Twenty-One Hundred Tygert Lane_

_Nashville, Tennessee_

I was shocked. Alice and Jasper were getting married and I would actually be able to attend this one. I had felt terrible that I had missed my sister's wedding, but part of me felt as though she didn't want me there anyway. Kate had actually planned her wedding on a day that she _knew_ I wouldn't be able to attend. Now she was refusing to speak with me.

I ran to the living room where I had left my phone and called Marcus.

"Bella, you are supposed to be resting your voice!"

"Hello to you, too, Marcus," I rasped.

"Dammit, Bella."

"Stop it, Marcus. I just need to know when my next concert is." I swallowed, trying to sooth my throat.

"Well, it will be _never_ if you don't stop speaking, but March the second. Why?"

I did a fist pump and laughed—albeit silently—but I laughed. "Ali and Jazz are getting married and I want to go."

"I'll call Tanya and have her get you a dress."

I smiled as I hung up, mentally preparing myself to see my friends—and Edward.

**~~STM~~**

"I don't think I can do this."

"Yes, you can, Bells. We're right here with you."

I turned and looked at the six people in the limo with me. Demetri, Heidi, Alec, Jane, Felix and Irina had all insisted on joining me at the wedding.

"Guys, I haven't seen him in four years. Not to mention that my sister is most likely gonna start something with me."

I had no sooner said the words, then my door was wrenched open and I came face to face with a fuming Kate.

"You have some nerve showing up here," she snapped.

Taking a deep breath, I unfolded myself from my seat and stepped out on the sidewalk to confront my sister.

"Hello, Kate."

"Don't you 'hello' me! How can you come here, when you wouldn't even come to your own flesh and blood's wedding?"

I took a good look at my sister—hair perfectly styled, flawless makeup...even the hideous coral dress was flattering to her frame. "You look great, big sister. And I didn't come to your wedding because I was in California, as you are well aware."

"That is no excuse!"

"Are we really gonna do this here and now, Kathryn? Make sure, because if Alice's perfect day is gonna be ruined, I want to make sure that she knows who is responsible."

Kate's high pitched squeal caused the church doors to burst open, and Jasper, Emmett, Garrett and Edward came running down the stairs.

"Seriously, Kate!?" Jasper yelled.

"She started it!" Kate stomped her foot.

"What are you? Five?" Edward questioned.

"Did you really just..."

I decided to intervene, interrupting Emmett. "Kate, I am here to watch one of my friends get married. I would suggest that you act like an adult and not a child who just had her favorite doll's head ripped off. If you will excuse me."

I turned to Jasper, kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear, "Congratulations." I then headed inside the church, my band mates and friends on my heels.

**EPOV**

"Kate, this has to stop, Babe," Garrett spoke to his wife, shocking the hell out of the rest of us. "I've kept my mouth shut for long enough. I should have stopped you when you planned the wedding on a day that you knew Bella couldn't be there, but I wanted you to have your day. Now, I think that you did it on purpose."

"Garrett, I..."

I bounced my head back and forth between the two of them. I noticed Emmett and Jasper doing the same.

"No, Kate. Get over it. You did it to yourself, not Bella. If I had known that you were gonna hold a grudge over something that _you_ did to Bella, I would have postponed our wedding. Or hell, I might have called it off."

I looked at Kate, who had started whimpering. Garrett, however, wasn't done.

"You are going to go in that church and apologize to your sister..."

"Fuck you, Garrett. No. I. Am. Not."

I watched in shock as Kate stomped off and marched back inside the church.

"Okay!" Emmett clapped his hands and rubbed them together. "Now that the drama is over," he slapped Jasper on the back, "let's get you married, Jazz."

The four of us laughed and headed back in the church just as the organist began to play.

**AN: Wow! Kate is a bitch, huh? Don't you just love Edward sticking up for Bella? Leave me some love. 'Til next time.**


	14. Chapter 13

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**EPOV**

Garrett started the guitar riff while Emmett tapped on the crash cymbal. Jasper soon joined on the steel and the stage lights came up. Flashes from cameras could be seen in the audience, and as I stepped up to the mic, I was home.

_I worked all week._

_Cleaned up clean cut and clean shaved._

_I got the cover off the '68._

_I fire it up and let them horses sing._

_A little pretty thing._

_A little tan-legged Georgia dream._

_She's a rockin' them holey jeans._

_Baby what you got goin' on Saturday?_

_You know words got it there's gonna be a party_

_Out of town about half a mile._

_Four wheel drives and big mud tires._

_Muscadine wine_

_Oh baby you can find me._

_In the back of a jacked up tailgate._

_Sittin' 'round watchin' all these pretty things._

_Get down in that Georgia clay._

_And I'll find peace._

_At the bottom of a real tall cold drink._

_I'm chillin' to some Skynyrd and some old Hank._

_Let's get this thing started._

_It's my kinda party._

The crowd was hot and we were on fire. For two hours we played and had a great time. It wasn't until after the show was over that the bottom dropped out.

Caius was waiting for us in the green room backstage when we were finished.

"Hey, C. What's up?" Emmett boomed.

"Sit down, fellas." We all sat and waited for what could only be bad news by Caius' demeanor. "There is no easy way to tell you this, so I am just gonna say it straight. Bella collapsed on stage tonight in Tucson. She was rushed to Tucson Medical Center."

"What's…" I swallowed around the lump in my throat. "What's wrong with her?"

"At this point they are still running tests, but from what I understand, she has a high fever and is suffering from exhaustion."

I looked at my family and could tell that they were all as shocked as I was. Alice was gripping Jasper's hand tightly, Rose was pacing, and Kate was clinging to Garrett with tears streaming down her face.

I cleared my throat. "I think that the girls should fly out there to be with her."

Everyone quickly agreed and arrangements were made. By the time that we left the arena, the guys and I were heading to our next venue while the girls were heading out to be with Bella. Before we parted ways completely, I pulled Kate aside.

"Your sister is sick, Kate. Don't start anything with her. You need to make amends." Kate had nodded and turned to join the rest.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I woke slowly, blinking my eyes from the bright light that surrounded me. I moved my head and saw my dad sitting beside me.

Licking my dry lips, I spoke, "Daddy?"

I watched his head pop up as his body leaned forward. "Bells, you've had us so worried, baby girl."

"What happened?"

"You collapsed on stage while you were in the middle of a concert. You don't remember?"

I closed my eyes and shook my head. "I remember performing and then I got dizzy. After that it's a blur."

A knock on the door stopped my dad from saying anything more. Whoever it was pushed it open and sauntered in the room.

"Oh, you're awake. Good. The doctor will be in shortly. Do you need anything?"

"May I have some water?" I asked. My throat was raw and I was having trouble swallowing.

"Sure thing."

I watched as the perky nurse sauntered back out of my room and breathed a sigh of relief. Something about her rubbed me the wrong way. It was almost as if she reminded me of someone.

"Rose, Alice and Kate are on their way."

I looked up as my dad started speaking again, shocked when he said that Kate was coming. I hadn't heard a word from her since our confrontation at Alice's wedding two months ago.

"Why is Kate coming, Dad?"

"She's your sister, Bella. She loves you."

I scoffed at that. "She sure has a fucked up way of showing it."

"Bella…"

"No, Dad." I held up my hand, stopping him from speaking. "Kate is mad at me for not coming to her wedding—a wedding that she _knew_ I couldn't attend."

My dad just put his head down and stared at the floor. He knew that I was right. Before either of us could say anything else, though, the door to my room opened again and the doctor walked in.

"Nice to hear you up and talking, Miss Swan."

"What's going on with me?" I asked, trying to speed up the talk.

I watched as the doctor crossed the room and stood at the end of my bed. "According to your test results, you have Strep throat and are suffering from exhaustion. You need rest and some time off."

I rolled my eyes. "Time off in the music industry will kill your career. Just give me some antibiotics and I'll promise to get some more rest."

The doctor sighed. "I can't force you to rest, but you have to take better care of yourself. Your throat is red and extremely irritated. If you don't take the necessary steps, you won't have a career. I'm going to discharge you with strict instructions, and if you don't follow them to the letter, you will end up back in the hospital, potentially with something more serious."

"I got it. I'll do what I have to."

The doctor reluctantly signed the papers for my release and handed everything over to me. I handed the papers to my dad and sent him to the pharmacy to get my script. While he was gone, I got dressed and collected my belongings. I left my room and made my way to the waiting area to wait for him to get back. What I found there surprised me.

"What are you guys doing here?" I asked, looking at my bandmates.

"Bella, you are our family," Heidi began.

"Where else would we be?" Jane finished.

"You guys…" I was touched. I had never had that before.

Felix stood up and offered his chair. "What did the doc say?" he asked.

"Strep throat and exhaustion. He said that I need to take better care of myself."

"Well, then that's what you're gonna do, Sweetie." Jane wrapped her arm around my shoulder.

I listened as the five of them came up with a plan to get me better and make sure that I was resting enough. I couldn't help but smile at the fact that I had so many people that were caring for me. I missed that.

**~~STM~~**

I walked to the door to answer the ringing bell the day after my hospital release. Even though I knew they were coming, I was still stunned to open the door and see the girls.

"Hi." I stepped back and allowed them over the threshold.

Once they were inside, I closed the door and took a deep breath before turning and facing the three women that I felt had abandoned me when Edward and I broke up.

"Come on in," I invited as I walked toward the living room. "Have a seat."

Alice was the first to speak. "How are you doing, Bella?"

"I'm fine, Alice." She gave me a look that said she didn't believe me. "Honestly! I didn't even know I was sick until I woke up in the hospital. All I had was a sore throat, but I've had a lot of those lately."

"Bella, you need to take care of yourself." Rosalie smiled gently at me.

I nodded. "I will, Rose."

We sat in silence for a few minutes, almost as if we didn't know what to say to each other. Carmen came in and broke the tension.

"Is there anything I can get you ladies? Tea, soda, water?"

After the girls made their requests, I decided that I couldn't take it anymore and opened Pandora's Box.

"What really made you come here today? You guys haven't spoken to me for months—you shunned me at Alice's wedding. What do you want?"

I watched as Alice broke down in tears and Rose hung her head. Kate just stared at me. In that moment, I knew; my sister was jealous.

"Why'd you do it, Kate?"

Kate sighed and ripped her eyes from mine. I saw her shoulders shake as she began to cry silently. "I'm…so sor…sorry, Bella."

"Ok, enough! You guys haven't been around. You don't get to sit there and be weepy and cry all over my furniture. How could you guys do that to me? We were like sisters! We did everything together, and when a relationship that I was in ended, you chose to drop me. You didn't notice or even care how devastated I was! I lost the love of my life because of some kid on a bus!" I stood up from the couch and began pacing the room. "And then I have to see that whore Lauren in one of the stores I was at with Tanya and she just _has_ to tell me how good Edward was in bed!" I whirled on the women sitting before me, staring at me in shock. "Didn't think I knew about that, did you? Oh, I knew, and even though we were broken up, it still hurt like hell! So tell me, why did you turn your backs on me?"

"Bella, that's not how it was at all," Rose began. "We didn't turn our backs on you—we stayed with the loves of _our_ lives. We didn't mean to make you think that we were choosing sides."

"Really, Bella, we are so sorry. I certainly never meant to make you feel like we didn't want you at the wedding," Alice added.

I turned to look at my silent sister. She hadn't said anything but sorry since the conversation started, so I sat down and studied her. She looked tired and had lost weight. Suddenly, it dawned on me. "Garrett didn't know that you scheduled the wedding purposefully so that I couldn't be there, did he?"

Kate shook her head but remained silent.

"He's mad at you, isn't he?" She nodded her head. "Then why, Kate?"

"Bella, you have everything—the beautiful voice, the looks, the career. I have nothing. And the kicker is…you never wanted it. You would have been content to be in a classroom all day, teaching music and wasting the gift that Mom gave you." Kate looked up at me then. "And I knew that that was what you really wanted. I pushed you that night to sing with Edward. I tricked you into going to the bar the night the scouts would be there, and I encouraged you to take the record deal. I even told you that Mom would have wanted it."

I sat back and stared at my sister. "Jealousy made you decide that I shouldn't be at your wedding?" Kate just nodded. "I…I have no words."

The four of us sat in my living room and didn't say a thing. It felt like ten minutes before anyone spoke, when in actuality it was probably only a few.

"When you say that you saw Lauren and she told you about sleeping with Edward, how long ago was that?" Rose questioned.

"Umm…probably about two months after our first awards show."

"Bella, Edward left in the middle of your performance that night because it was too painful for him to listen to you sing about the pain he put you through. He went straight to a bar and got drunk. When he woke up the next morning, Lauren was in his bed and he didn't remember how she got there."

I started laughing—small giggles at first, then loud guffaws. Eventually, I had tears streaming down my face. The laughter stopped as quickly as it had begun and turned to sobs.

"She…made it…seem…like it…was this…night of…passion," I sobbed brokenly.

I don't know how long I cried, but I found myself doing so all over Kate, who had apparently decided to put her jealousy aside and be my sister again. "Bella, shh." She stroked my hair.

I finally got control of myself and looked up, wiping the tears from my face. "I should have known that it wasn't what she made it out to be. Edward despised her."

"He still does," Alice giggled.

"What do you mean?"

"She showed up at the house that the guys lived in. Well, Jasper and I live there now. She was screaming that he needed to come out, and she had this ragamuffin kid with her. I made the mistake of opening the door, to which she came running in, shouting for Edward."

"What? Was she trying to claim that the kid was his?" I gasped.

"Yeah. It's not though. Edward nipped that in the bud real quick and then got a restraining order," Alice laughed.

"I'll bet Siobhan got an earful that day," Rose chuckled.

"Who is Siobhan?" I watched the three of them share a look and knew that that would be a conversation for a different time.

**AN: Well now we have an explanation from Kate. There is definitely more there, but that will be revealed in future chapters. We are almost to the prologue, only 2 more chapters. Will Bella sing with Edward again? And exactly what is going on with her? 'Til next time, leave me some love.**


	15. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**AN2: After some reviews that I have received recently, I find that this is necessary. This story has been planned out the way that it's going from the beginning. If you want a fluffy story, I can recommend a few, but this is not one of them. Not everyone meets and get their happily ever after from day one. There are rough times and bumpy roads. Edward and Bella are going through that right now, but this is an E/B story. Eventually they will work things out. If you don't like the fact that they'll be together in the end, stop reading now. This is the only time that I will say this. **

**BPOV**

_I looked around the reception hall and noticed that Edward was sitting at a table by himself. I took a deep breath, rose from my __seat, __and walked over to him. He looked up as I approached, and I watched his eyebrows raise in shock._

"_Hi. Mind if I sit?" _

_He shook his head—never saying a word—and pulled out the chair next to him._

_We sat in silence for a while, just watching the couples whirling around the floor, laughing and having a good time._

"_How've you…" he started._

"_How're you d…" I began at the same time._

_We both chuckled and relaxed a little. Edward nodded for me to go first._

"_How're you doing, Edward?"_

_He sighed. "I've been okay, just tired. I'm glad that we're between tours and I have some down time. How've you been? Felix tells me that you've been sick."_

_I nodded. "I've been fighting strep throat and exhaustion. I guess I need to take better care of myself." I looked up at him then. "So? You and Felix? Do you guys talk a lot?"_

"_It's not like that, Bella. I worry about you. Just because we aren't together, doesn't mean that I don't still care."_

"_Edward, I_…_"_

I woke up and took in my surroundings. I still dreamt about that conversation. Since then, I have wondered if he is still in love with me. I knew that I still loved him, but I had done too much to ever get him back.

I also still needed to have a conversation with Felix about telling Edward all of my business.

A knock sounded on my bedroom door and Alice poked her head in. "Bella? Are you awake?"

"Yeah, Alice. Come on in."

I watched the pixie bounce into the room and hop onto my bed, like she did when we were growing up. We weren't really there yet, but at least we were talking again.

"Bella, I never meant for you to think we were abandoning you. And at my wedding, I was so busy making sure that everything was going according to my _plan,_ that I barely spoke to my husband. I did notice that you talked to Edward. How did that go?" Alice asked as she made herself comfortable.

I shrugged. "It went fine. Alice, we barely spoke. When we did, it was stilted. I don't know how he feels, but I hope that someday he can forgive me for being such a fool." I sighed heavily. "I should have listened to you guys. I should have listened to Edward. I should have done a lot of things."

"Bella, you can't live in the past."

Alice and I turned toward the voice and saw Rosalie standing in my doorway. "I know, but look at what my jealousy and stubbornness did."

"Edward takes some of the blame too, you know. He says that his inability to show his true emotions and his fear of being cheated on drove you away. At least that's what he tells Siobhan," Rose said as she sat on the end of the bed.

"Who is Siobhan? You keep talking about her and Edward. Is that his girlfriend?" Deep inside I felt a tremor, and I prayed that she wasn't.

Alice and Rose chuckled. "No, Bella."

"Siobhan is Edward's therapist. He's been seeing her since after the whole awards show/Lauren debacle. He even calls her from the road when he needs to," Rose explained.

"Rose, is he really okay?"

"He's…better," she told me.

"What's that mean?"

Alice looked into my eyes. "Bella, after you left, Edward was in a really bad place. He was drinking…a lot. He stopped writing. He stopped…"

"Living," Rose finished.

"Was that…was it because of me?" I had to know.

"No, Bella. You were just the final brick that dropped him over the edge. Edward had and still has issues, but he's working them out."

I thought that perhaps I should find someone to talk to, too—someone who could help me with my issues. Jake had really done a number on me, which is probably why I was so quick to believe what I saw and not listen to explanations.

It was time for a change, and I was finally ready to make it.

**~~STM~~**

_Hey, good girl (hey, good girl)_

_With your head in the clouds_

_I bet you I can tell you_

_What you're…_

Before I had even finished the first verse, I began coughing. I had been trying to record the same song for the last two hours, but couldn't seem to get through it.

I grabbed another bottle of water and sucked it down my throat. When I finally pulled the bottle away, everyone was staring at me—including Marcus and Aro.

"Bella, I think there is something seriously wrong. Maybe we need to consult another doctor. Is there anyone you know that we can trust?" Marcus asked.

"Actually, yes…" I replied as I pulled my cell phone from the bag at my feet. I opened my contacts and scrolled to the name that I needed. He answered after only two rings.

"_Hello?"_

"Carlisle? It's Bella. I need your help."

**EPOV**

_Baby, what are we becoming?_

_It feels just like we're always running_

_Rolling through the motions every day_

_I could lean in to hold you_

_Or act like I don't even know you_

_Seems like you could care less either way_

I was sitting at the piano in my living room, messing around with some lyrics and music when my phone rang. I got up from my bench and walked to the phone, picking it up right before the machine.

"Hello?"

"_Edward, my boy, how are you?"_

"I'm good, Uncle Mitch. How are you? Aunt Lynie?" I grabbed a soda from the fridge—wishing it was a beer—walked to the living room and then sat on the couch.

"_We're good, Son. I have a proposition for you."_

"I'm listening." I was already intrigued.

Mitchel Cox was the co-founder of the Cullen foundation. His wife, my Aunt Lynette, or Lynie, was co-chairing an auction with my mother. He wanted me to write the song that would be the theme for the event. It was all about making your mark and never letting people forget that you had existed.

"Of course, Uncle Mitch. I would be honored. When is the benefit/auction?"

"_In three months. Do you think you can have it written and ready by then?"_

"No problem. I'll get started on it and let you know how it's going." We talked for a little longer then disconnected, and I immediately walked over to my piano and sat down, tapping the keys and waiting for inspiration to strike.

I started playing a melody and was soon so lost in the music that when I looked up again, three hours had passed. I had made a lot of headway, and decided to crash and get back to it the next day. I walked back down the hallway to my bedroom, flopped face down on the bed, and was out before my body had finished bouncing.

**~~STM~~**

I sat in front of my piano with my guitar in arm's reach, a pencil clenched between my teeth and sheets of blank lines in front of me. I had started at five that morning and was still working out the melody. I thought I had it, so I kept going back over what I was playing, and then stopping to write it down.

I was so focused that I never heard the doorbell. I didn't hear anyone open the door, either, until Emmett's hulking form was looming over me.

"Eddie?"

I jumped, sending papers flying everywhere. "Emmett! What the fuck?"

"Sorry, Bro. What are you doing? We've been calling you for hours."

"I know. I turned the ringer off after the tenth call. I'm writing something for Uncle Mitch and the Cullen Foundation. Did you need something?"

I was gathering up the papers that were spread out on the floor, not meeting my brother's eyes. I needed to get back to it before I lost my groove. Once I had everything picked up, I sat back down, waiting for Emmett to either leave or speak.

"What, Em?!" I growled, finally having enough of the silent staring.

"Eddie, did you forget that we were supposed to play ball today?"

"Fuck! Sorry, Em, but I have to keep going on this while I have the momentum. Go play the game and then bring the guys to the studio. I want to lay tracks as soon as I get this done."

I heard Emmett sigh behind me. "Alright, Eddie."

"And stop calling me that!" I shouted after his retreating form, hearing his loud guffaws all the way down the hall.

I chuckled, but then turned back to what I was doing and was soon immersed again.

Another few hours passed and the only thing that stopped me was my growling stomach. I gathered up all of my work, threw it in a bag, and grabbed my car keys. I would hit a drive-thru on my way to the studio.

I had just finished my Whopper and rings when my brothers and Garrett came into the room I was occupying.

"Hey, E! What's up?" Garrett clapped me on my back.

"Hey, guys. Listen. I finished the song for Uncle Mitch and I want you guys to play it with me. I want to hear all of the instruments involved. The only other thing I am going to need is a string section."

The four of us sat down. I handed them the music I had been working on then started in on the piano. Emmett soon joined on the drums and the other two followed the flow. It wasn't long before I heard what I had written come to life. Now I just needed the voice. I knew the one that I wanted, but I didn't think it would be possible. Could I even get her to agree?

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I sat in Carlisle's private office, away from the other patients who were waiting. I didn't need to be seen and have the paparazzi stalk me, trying to find out if I had a baby bump or something. It was ridiculous the stories those assholes made up.

The door behind me opened and Carlisle walked in, rounding his desk and sitting down across from me.

"Bella, what's going on? It sounded urgent on the phone."

I smiled softly. "Carlisle, I think that there is something seriously wrong with me. I have been suffering from chronic sore throats for the last year. In the last six months my symptoms have changed and I can now add hoarseness to my voice that I have never heard before. It's like the tone of my voice is changing."

"Any cough?" Carlisle asked as he took notes.

I nodded. "Yeah, again chronic for the last year or so."

I watched Carlisle furrow his brow and then get up and walk over to me. He reached his hands forward toward my neck. "May I?"

I nodded and felt his warm hands on my neck as he felt along my throat and checked my lymph nodes for abnormalities. He stopped about halfway down and met my eyes.

"Bella, how long has this knot been here?"

I lifted my hand up to where his were and felt what he was feeling. "I don't know. I've never felt it before."

"Have you seen a doctor about your symptoms?"

I nodded. "Yes, two of them. Carlisle, what are you thinking?"

He turned and went back around his desk. I watched him pull out his iPad. He looked at something I couldn't see and then looked up at me.

"Bella, I want to schedule you for a biopsy. I want to know what that is. It could be nothing, but I would rather not chance it since you use your voice all the time."

"Okay, umm…is it like a surgery?" I was suddenly very nervous and wished I had thought to bring Heidi or Jane with me.

"Yes. I would put you out under anesthesia and then use a laryngoscope to go in through your mouth and down your throat to retrieve a tissue sample. I would then send that sample to the lab for analysis. I don't want to make any diagnosis until I have those results, Bella."

I was stunned. I thought that I was just having a sore throat, but now I am hearing surgery. "Okay, Carlisle. Whatever you think—you're the doctor. When?"

"As soon as possible. I have time tomorrow, so let's schedule you for ten in the morning. Nothing to eat or drink after midnight tonight. I also want to send you down to the lab right now to have some blood drawn."

I must have had a look of fear on my face because Carlisle was suddenly kneeling before me, gripping my hands and trying to ease my mind.

"Bella, don't worry until I give you a reason, okay?"

I nodded numbly. "I trust you, Carlisle."

**~~STM~~**

The next morning found me lying in a hospital bed while a nurse inserted an IV into the top of my hand. I was staring at a spot on the wall since the sight of needles made me sick.

"Okay, Sweetie, you're all set. The doctor will be in in a few minutes."

I just nodded and closed my eyes.

"Bella?"

I opened my eyes to see my father and sister standing in the doorway. "How did you guys know?"

"Marcus called me," Charlie told me as they walked toward my bed.

"Kate, you didn't…"

"No, Bells, I didn't say anything."

I nodded and closed my eyes again, waiting for Carlisle and the inevitable. It wasn't long before I was being wheeled into surgery and feeling the warmth of the anesthetic flowing through me, knocking me out.

When I woke up, Kate and my dad were sitting next to my bed once again. I tried to speak, but my throat was so sore.

"Don't try to speak, Bella. I want you to rest your voice," Carlisle said as he walked into the room. I nodded and he continued. "I sent the sample to the lab and I will have the results this afternoon, so go home and rest and I will call you as soon as I know something, okay?"

I nodded again. Carlisle smiled gently, patted my leg and then left. Kate helped me dress since I was feeling lightheaded from being in a prone position for so long.

They took me home and got me settled. I was resting in my room, when I heard the voices. Getting out of bed, I padded toward the living room and smiled when I saw my dad and Kate, as well as my entire band, Marcus, Irina and Tanya. I was happy to have the support as I awaited my fate.

The ringing of the phone caused silence to descend upon us. I took a deep breath and picked it up.

"Hello?" I asked hoarsely.

"Bella? It's Carlisle."

**AN: Sorry for the cliffie. Leave me your thoughts. Until next time.**


	16. Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**EPOV**

I sat hunched over the piano in the studio. I had been trying to distract myself for the last couple of hours. I was praying beyond all hope that Bella was going to show, but I really had no reason to. We hadn't spoken since Alice's wedding, and even that was brief.

"_It's not like that, Bella. I worry about you. Just because we aren't together, doesn't mean that I don't still care."_

"_Edward, I_…_"_

"_No, I'm sorry, Bella. I'll stop if that's what you want."_

_Bella shook her head. "I don't mind, Edward. I want to know about you, too. And you're right: just because we aren't together doesn't…" she paused to take a breath. "Doesn't mean I don't still care about you, too."_

_Before I could comment, she had gotten up and left._

I smiled, thinking about that conversation. Bella had admitted that she still cared about me. It gave me hope that maybe—just maybe—there was a chance for us.

I turned back to the piano and played some more. I had already perfected the song and had hired the string section that I would need to complete the sound. Now all I needed was the singer.

"Hey, Edward." Emmett clapped me on the back as he walked past me toward his drum set.

"Do you think she's gonna show?" Garrett asked as he wandered over to his guitar.

I shrugged. "I hope so, but I'm not sure. I haven't heard from her."

"Heard from who?"

I turned and looked at Aro in the doorway.

"I asked Bella to come sing this one, Aro. I'm hoping that she'll show."

Aro's eyebrows raised in surprise before he turned and walked back out the way that he had come. I turned back to Garrett and Emmett and looked at them curiously. They both shrugged, but I didn't miss the look that they shared.

"Okay, what the fuck was that?"

"What, Bro?"

"I saw you two look at each other. Is there something going on that I should know about?"

Garrett looked first at Emmett and then back at me. "It's not for us to tell you, Ed. Just trust us, alright?"

I furrowed my brow but nodded. Whatever it was, I knew that it concerned Bella, and I would just have to be patient and hope that she showed up.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

_Dear Bella,_

_I know it's been a while since you've heard from me, and I'm sorry for that. When things between us went sour, I thought that it would be easier to cut you out completely. Easier for whom, I'm not sure. It certainly hasn't been easy for me. I think of you every day and wish that things could have been different, but I have come to realize that I was at fault for what happened between us._

_Enough dwelling in the past, though. I heard that you are taking a break from the industry, and I hope that this letter finds you well. A project has fallen in my lap to write a song for a benefit for the Cullen Foundation. Yes, my mother and father have started it, but it was my uncle that made the request._

_The song that I have written needs a woman to sing it. Unfortunately, I know no other female singers with the voice to pull it off. My point is that I was hoping that you would be willing to sing with me...for old time's sake. If you are willing, I will be in the studio on Saturday all day, laying down the tracks. I hope to see you._

_Edward_

I folded the letter back up, having read it for the third time in twenty minutes. Unfolding myself from my chair, I carried the letter, my tea cup and the phone with me back into the house. I went into the kitchen and placed my mug in the sink.

"Are you going to go to the studio, Novio?" Carmen asked from behind me.

I turned and met her worried eyes. "As long as Carlisle agrees, then yes."

She nodded, but her eyes showed her worry and fear. I smiled gently and then walked to my room to call my doctor. I dialed with shaky fingers, afraid that he would tell me no.

"Hello, Bella. What can I do for you?"

I cleared my throat, trying to ease my nerves before I spoke. "Um, Carlisle. I'm sure you know that Edward was asked to write a song for the foundation by Mitch."

"Yes, I am aware."

"He sent me a letter asking me to sing the song that he wrote, Carlisle. I really want to do this."

Carlisle sighed over the line. "Okay, Bella. Just remember to rest when you need to and have plenty of water readily available."

"I will, Carlisle and thank you."

"Don't thank me, Bella. Just be careful."

I promised him that I would be and then hung up. I smiled as I headed for the shower and wondered what the afternoon would bring. I knew that the first thing I needed to do was talk to Edward.

**~~STM~~**

I stepped inside the studio and walked down the familiar hallway, quickly finding myself standing outside of door three. I wondered what kind of song this was, since it appeared that Edward had booked the largest room available.

I eased open the door and saw Aro sitting behind the soundboard. He smiled at me and nodded that I should go inside.

It wasn't long before Emmett and Garrett noticed me standing there, because they immediately stopped playing. I watched Jasper put down his guitar and walk over to me, pulling me into a hug.

"How are you?" he whispered in my ear.

"I'm good, Jazz." I pulled back and saw everyone looking at me. "Hi, guys." I waved.

I caught movement from the corner of my eye and turned my head just as Edward rose from the piano. As he walked toward me, I took in his appearance—hair still in its usual disarray and eyes just as bright as I remembered. He wrapped his arms around me and I was immediately surrounded by his scent—all male and all Edward.

"Thanks for coming."

I nodded as I pulled myself from his embrace. "No problem. Before we start though, I was hoping that we could get something to drink and talk."

"Umm, yeah sure. Let me just…"

"Go ahead, Edward. We'll be here," Emmett urged.

I mouthed a 'thank you' and then turned to go out in the hallway to wait for Edward. When he joined me, I suggested that we get coffee and then walk over to the park.

It wasn't long before the both of us were seated and looking at the lake while the ducks swam by.

"Bella, what's going on? Emmett and Garrett have been acting weird all morning."

I sighed. "I need to tell you something and it won't be easy to hear."

"Okay…"

"I have to leave the industry for a while. I wanted you to hear it from me before I held a press conference and made the announcement."

"Why, Bella? What's going on?"

I looked down at my hands, then turned my head and looked into his eyes. "I have cancer, Edward."

I watched as a myriad of emotion crossed Edward's face, and waited for him to say something, anything.

"Bella…" his voice broke. "What…how…when?"

I explained everything to him, right up until my surgery the week before. "Your dad thinks that they caught it quickly enough to be successful with treatment. He's confident that with surgery and radiation and chemo, I'll still be able to sing. I called him before I came to the studio today to make sure that singing this last song with you would be okay."

"Bella, I don't want you to take any chances." Edward was shaking his head. "We can postpone this until you're feeling better."

"And if I am never able to sing again? What then? I need to do this now, Edward. Not just for you, but for me—for my fans. I need to leave a mark and let everyone know that I will be back. That I am _not_ going to let cancer beat me."

"Bella," Edward got up from the bench beside me and knelt in front of me. "What do you need? What can I do?"

I smiled gently, noticing the tears that were in his eyes and on his cheeks. "You're doing it by asking me to sing. I need this, Edward. Now more than ever."

"Okay." He rose and stood before me, holding out his hand to me. "But I am going to be there, every step of the way, fighting with you."

I took his outstretched hand and allowed him to pull me up. "Why?"

Edward's hands were suddenly on my face, his thumbs running across the apple of my cheeks. "Because despite all of the bullshit and words between us, I still love you, Bella. I am gonna prove myself to you and win you back—whatever it takes."

I smiled and thought to myself: _game on._

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I was still reeling from what Bella had told me. _Cancer!_ My Bella has cancer. As we walked back to the studio, I thought about all the time and things that we had missed out on.

"Stop it, Edward."

I looked down at Bella. "Stop what?"

"Stop thinking about all of the things that we could have been and done. I'm not dead, nor will I be any time soon."

"Sorry," I mumbled.

"Don't be sorry. Just stop acting as if I have been given a death sentence."

"How do you do it? How are you so strong?"

Bella chuckled and stopped walking. "I'm not strong. I'm scared as hell, but I know that if I let that show, the cancer wins. I have too much left to live for to allow that."

I watched as she walked back inside the studio, letting the door close behind her. When it clicked into place, I broke from my trance. Opening the door, I followed after her.

I found her once again inside the studio, only this time she was laughing with my brothers and Garrett. I had to stop and watch her, wondering if she had always looked that beautiful. I smiled as I watched her interact with my family and vowed that she would always have that smile.

"So, Bells, what do you need to make this easier on your voice?" I asked as I made my presence known.

Bella turned, met my gaze, and smiled. "Plenty of water. I have a tendency to cough when I am singing."

She giggled and I allowed the sound to wash over me. I nodded and looked at Jasper. "Can you get the water while I let Bella see the music?"

"Sure, be right back."

I stepped forward and grabbed the sheet music from the top of the piano and handed it to Bella. "Keep in mind that I wrote this before I knew you were sick, okay?"

Bella nodded and sat down. I waited with baited breath until she was finished. When she did look up at me, her eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

"Edward…"

"I know. Kinda makes your last recording all the more poignant doesn't it?"

She nodded then looked back at the papers in her hands. "It's almost like you reached into my heart and pulled out exactly what I want to say."

Jasper came back in at that moment and set four bottles of water next to Bella. "Should we do a run-through first?" he asked.

I nodded, never taking my eyes from Bella.

**~~STM~~**

I was up at dawn the next morning, having only gotten about an hour of sleep. I was scared that I was going to lose Bella before we even got our second chance. I needed to talk to Siobhan.

Not caring about the hour, I dialed the number of my savior, praying that she could help me again.

"_Good Morning, Edward."_

"I'm sorry to call so early, but I really need to talk to you."

"_So talk." _

And talk I did. I spilled everything about my conversation with Bella and the subsequent feelings.

"_Edward, everything that you are feeling is perfectly normal. You love her and you are bound to be scared to lose her. Stop flipping out," _Siobhan ordered

"Flipping out? Is that a medical term?" I laughed.

"_Yes! At five in the morning it is. Now go to bed and stop it. Take one of the pills I gave you if you need it."_

I thanked her, apologized again, and then hung up. For once I agreed with my therapist. I needed to stop 'flipping out' and just roll with the punches. If Bella was strong enough to face the cancer head on, then I could be there by her side, helping in any way that she would let me.

**BPOV**

I rolled over, looked at my clock, and groaned. Six in the morning. Not exactly a time that I wanted to be up, but if I was going to be able to fight this disease and win, then I needed to take better care of myself. Starting with exercise.

Forcing myself out of bed, I got dressed in some running clothes and then went to the kitchen for some juice. After downing the beverage, I opened the patio doors and stepped outside.

I had purchased a ranch on the outskirts of town. I had wanted some solitude and a place that I could keep a few horses. Cliché́ for a country singer I know, but I wanted it. Now, I was going to walk—perhaps jog—my property. Making sure that my cell-phone was charged and in my pocket, I set off.

Two hours later, I walked back into my home and headed straight for the shower. Once I was clean, I stepped out and wrapped myself in a towel. I looked at the clock and picked up my pace a little. I had an appointment with Carlisle in forty-five minutes, and I would be pushing it to be on time. I dressed quickly in a pair of jeans and a long sleeved V-neck shirt. I braided my hair over my shoulder, pulled on a pair of sandals, and I was out the door and on my way to the office with twenty minutes to spare.

I sat in the waiting room and played Candy Crush on my phone while I waited to be called back. That damn game was addicting.

"Isabella."

I stood and walked back to Carlisle's office. He stood up as I walked in and came around the desk, pulling me into a hug.

"How are you feeling?"

I pulled back and sat in the chair opposite his. "Fine. A little hoarse, but I've become accustomed to that. We've been rehearsing all week, though, so…"

"Bella, please tell me that you're taking it easy."

"I'm fine, Carlisle."

He shook his head but kept quiet. "Okay, Bella. I want to go ahead and schedule the surgery to remove the tumor. There are several ways that we can go about it, but I think that surgery is your best option. We'll remove the tumor and then treat you with radiation and chemotherapy. It'll be tough and you'll be sick, so I think that you need to have someone move in with you full-time. I know that you have Carmen, but she isn't there all the time, is she?"

I shook my head. "No, she is there every day, but she leaves after seven."

"Okay, I'll let you figure that part out. I want to schedule the surgery for…" Carlisle looked at his schedule, "the week after next, okay? So whatever you need to do, get it done soon. Are you recording the song today?"

"Yeah, uh, I am meeting Edward and the guys at the studio when I leave here." My head was reeling. I knew that it was coming, but it was so fast. "I guess I need to have a press conference soon."

Carlisle smiled sadly. "You will beat this, Bella. You _will_ sing again. Remember that. This isn't the end of your career."

I smiled, stood up and hugged him, then walked out of his office. I would just have to hold on and believe him when he told me that I would sing again. The world hadn't seen the last of Izzie Swan.

**AN: I am going to be writing a O/S for the Fandom for Oklahoma. I hope that you will all contribute to this cause and help those in need. Details can be found in my FB group, Momma's BookCase. Leave me some love. Until next time.**


	17. Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**AN: Sorry if you are getting an alert about a new chapter. This is not one. This is a corrected chapter. I had a typo pointed out to me and it was a major one, so I fixed it. Thank you Momma Laura!**

**BPOV**

I was just getting ready to leave Carlisle's office to meet the guys at the studio when a thought occurred to me. I immediately turned and walked back in the door, catching Carlisle by surprise.

"Bella?"

"Carlisle, what about children?"

Carlisle looked at me confused. "What about them?"

I sighed and sat down. "I've read that women that go through chemo and radiation sometimes become infertile. What is the likelihood of that happening to me?"

Carlisle sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, much like I had seen Edward do before. "I can't say for sure, Bella. It could happen, but then on the other hand it might not. I hate to speculate." Carlisle stood up then and walked around his desk to me. "Is this something that you're worried about?"

I nodded. "Is there any way that we can guarantee that I will have children in the future?"

Carlisle smiled. "Yes, Bella. Let me make a few calls and we'll get you taken care of before the surgery."

"Thanks, Carlisle."

**~~STM~~**

When I walked into the studio thirty minutes later, I felt more at ease. I smiled—a genuine smile—for the first time since my diagnosis, suddenly confident that I would beat this and have a future.

Opening the door to studio three, I saw all of the guys playing and the red light on, indicating that they were recording. I sat down in the empty chair next to Aro, listening and waiting.

"How'd the appointment go?" Aro asked suddenly.

I looked over at him in surprise. "Fine. I'll have the surgery in two weeks. Then after that," I shrugged, "we'll have to see."

Aro nodded and then looked up when the music stopped. He flipped on the intercom and spoke into the microphone. "Everything okay, Edward?"

"Yeah. Let's try it again, though." Edward's voice came over the speaker.

"You got it." Aro pressed a few buttons and then spoke again. "Whenever you're ready."

I listened as Jasper opened with a guitar riff, followed by Emmett on the drums. Edward soon joined them with his voice.

_All we do right is make love and_

_We both know now that ain't enough_

_Ain't gonna beg you to stay_

_Ain't gotta ask you what's wrong_

_Ain't no reason running after something already gone_

_Take off your leavin' dress_

_Let's do what we do best_

_I guess everybody's got their way of moving on_

_Girl rest your head one more time in my bed_

_Love me like you loved me when you loved me_

_And you didn't have to try_

_Let's lay down tonight_

_And kiss tomorrow goodbye_

I closed my eyes and let the music and lyrics wash over me. It wasn't long before Aro was shaking my arm to wake me up.

"Bella?"

"Hmm?" I moaned.

"Bella, they're ready for you."

I blinked my eyes open and looked into the dark eyes of Aro. "Aro?" I licked my lips. "Sorry, did I fall asleep?"

"Bella, have you not been sleeping?"

I shrugged and stood up, stretching. "Not really. My brain won't shut down."

Before Aro could comment, Edward walked out of the recording room. "Hey, Bella. You ready?"

I nodded and followed him back into the room. Once I was in place and the string section had come in, we got started. The guitar started and then Edward joined on the piano. When it was time, I lifted my head and began to sing.

_You will notice me_

_I'll be leaving my mark like initials carved in an old oak tree_

_You wait and see_

_Maybe I'll write like Twain wrote_

_Maybe I'll paint like Van Gogh_

_Cure the common cold_

_I don't know but I'm ready start 'cause I know in my heart_

Edward and Garrett joined in with me on the chorus. I couldn't help the smile that graced my face.

_I wanna do something that matters_

_Say something different_

_Something that sets the whole world on its ear_

_I wanna do something better_

_With the time I've been given_

_And I wanna try_

_To touch a few hearts in this life_

_Leave nothing less_

_Than something that says "I was here"_

The music kept on and amazingly, so did my voice.

_I will prove you wrong_

_If you think I'm all talk, you're in for a shock_

_Cause this dream's too strong_

_And before too long_

_Maybe I'll compose symphonies,_

_Maybe I'll fight for world peace_

'_Cause I know it's my destiny_

_To leave more than a trace of myself in this place_

As I was singing, I could feel the tears falling from my eyes but I refused to look at anyone. I just let my heart do the singing for me.

**EPOV**

I watched Bella sing and my heart broke when I saw the tears on her cheeks. I hated that she was going through this, but I refused to let her do it alone. I shook my head and focused back on the song. We needed to finish this and then we could begin the fight.

I closed my eyes and let the song wash over me.

_I wanna do something that matters_

_Say something different_

_Something that sets the whole world on its ear_

_I wanna do something better_

_With the time I've been given_

_And I wanna try_

_To touch a few hearts in this life_

_Leave nothing less_

_Than something that says "I was here"_

_And I know that I will do more than just pass through this life_

_I'll leave nothing less than something that says "I was here"_

Bella's voice was strong as the music crescendoed. I heard her actually hang onto a note that she probably shouldn't have.

_I was here_

_(I was here)_

_I was here_

_(wanna do something that matters)_

_(Something that says I was here)_

_wanna do something that matters_

_(Something that says I was here)_

_I was here _

When the last note died away, I looked through the glass at Aro and waited for his signal. I saw his thumb go up and knew that we had nailed it, so I smiled at the room.

"I think we got it, but Aro is gonna send in the playback momentarily."

Everyone nodded and took a seat. I watched Bella as she grabbed a bottle of water and sucked it down greedily, but was grimacing as she swallowed.

"You okay, Bella?"

She just nodded and smiled easily at me. "I'm fine."

Any other conversation was cut off as Aro announced the playback. We all sat back and listened, and it wasn't long before we were all smiling with tears running down our faces. I knew then that this song was going to go down in history.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I woke up the morning of the press conference nervous for what the day would bring. Carlisle was going to be there to answer the medical questions from the press as best he could without revealing too much about my illness, thus not violating any HIPAA laws.

When I stepped out of the shower I heard the phone ringing. I wrapped a towel around myself and ran to answer it.

"Hello?" I answered breathlessly.

"Bella? Are you alright?" Edward's voice was laced with concern.

I giggled. "I'm fine. I had to run for the phone, that's all. What's up?" I took the phone with me back to the bathroom and began running a comb through my hair.

"I was just wondering if perhaps, maybe you would um…"

I couldn't help but laugh as Edward stuttered his way through talking to me. "Edward? Are you okay?"

He chuckled in my ear before trying again. "I was wondering if after the press conference you would be interested in getting something to eat—with me?"

If he only knew how much I would enjoy that. I was afraid, though. Afraid that we would slip into the old familiar pattern and not learn from our past. "Edward, I…"

"Just to talk, Bella. I just want to be your friend. I know that nothing else is possible. I just want to clear the air. It's been—a long time coming."

"Yeah, sure. That sounds good, Edward. Marcus was planning on picking me up and bringing me back, but you can do that if you don't mind."

"Not at all. I'll see you in a few hours, Bella."

"Okay. Bye, Edward."

I disconnected the call and continued to prepare myself for one of the hardest things I would ever have to do—say goodbye to my career.

**~~STM~~**

"Ladies and gentleman, thank you for coming this afternoon. Miss Swan is going to say a few words and then we'll take some questions." Marcus turned to me. "Izzie."

I stepped up to the podium and squinted as the flashbulbs went off. Taking a deep breath, I looked around and then locked eyes with Edward. Suddenly, I was calm.

"Good afternoon. As I am sure that you have heard, I am going to be taking a hiatus from this industry. Over the last couple of years I have suffered from chronic sore throats and have had to unfortunately cancel several shows. Recently, after extensive tests, I have been given the correct diagnosis. Unfortunately, that diagnosis is cancer. I plan to fight this illness with everything that I have in me. Make no mistake, I _will_ win. I will find my way back to the industry that I have come to love so much. These last five years have been an adventure and not one that I am finished with yet. I still have plenty of songs to sing." I stopped and took a drink of the water that was next to me. "Now, I'll take a few questions."

It seemed like hours before Marcus finally put a stop to the questioning, but was probably only about twenty minutes. When the press finally took the hint, I was ushered away. I found Edward waiting beside Marcus' car for me.

"You still want to go? You look exhausted."

I laughed. "Thanks. Is that your way of telling me I look like shit?"

"You look beautiful."

I blushed and looked away. I took a deep breath and then lifted my eyes back to his. "Let's go."

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I let Bella choose the restaurant and chuckled at her choice.

"What?"

"Burger King? Really?"

She laughed. "We'll get it to go and then go sit at the lake, okay? You want to talk and you know that we won't get any peace if we're in public. Especially with the press release."

I shook my head and chuckled, but did as she asked. We got our food, and then headed toward the lake that we had found when we were dating. We sat on the hood of my car and ate in silence, neither of us knowing where to start. I finally couldn't take it anymore.

"Why'd you leave like you did?"

Bella sighed beside me. "I never told you what happened with Jacob, did I?"

I shook my head and waited, slowly munching on my fries. It was a while before she spoke.

"I was sixteen when I met Jacob. I hated him on sight. He was an arrogant son of a bitch that pursued me for two years. It wasn't until I graduated high school that he actually caught me. It was the night of my graduation party. Someone had managed to sneak some alcohol past the chief and I was drunk. When I woke up the next morning, Jacob was in bed with me and we were both naked.

"I didn't remember even getting to bed that night, let alone getting there with him. Anyway, after that night, we were pretty much together all the time. I headed off to college at the end of the summer, and I didn't know it at the time, but Jacob followed me."

I was silent as Bella spoke. I wanted to hate the man and I still didn't know what had transpired. I looked over at her when she spoke again.

"I had thought that he understood I was breaking up with him when I left. It wasn't until he found me while I was on a date that I saw his true colors. He was so angry. He beat up my date and then dragged me from the restaurant by my arm."

Bella looked at me then. "He never hit me, but that didn't stop him from being verbally and mentally abusive." She looked away again but kept on with her story. "I don't know why I stayed. I guess because he was familiar and because I was afraid that he would hurt someone else."

"Bella, you don't have to tell me all of this," I interrupted.

"Yes, I do. You need to understand why I reacted the way that I did."

I reached over and took her hand in mine. "Okay."

Bella squeezed my hand before continuing with her tale. "About two months before I met you, I came home and found him. He was in bed with not only another woman, but a man, too. Something in me just…snapped and I hit him with the baseball bat he kept next to the door. He hadn't even realized I was there."

I couldn't help it and I burst out laughing. "You hit him with a bat?"

Bella smiled at me. "Yeah. Looking back on it now, I think I acted rashly, but at the time I was just so angry. I screamed and threw things. I scared the shit out of his partners. I guess they thought they were next. After I was finally finished with my tirade, I left. I didn't see him again until the night that I came to find you at Handlebar J's."

"That was the text you got that made you leave, right?" I had always wondered what happened.

Bella nodded. "He grabbed me that night and I decked him. I haven't heard from him since." Bella looked at me then. "I know that what he did is no excuse for not listening to you, but when I saw that girl…"

"I get it, Bella." And I did. I understood that what he had done was still fresh, but I had thought that she trusted me.

"I trusted you, but when you see what I saw, it's all overwhelming. Instead of letting myself feel what I did with Jacob, I took myself out of the equation."

I looked away from her and down at my shoes. "How…uh, how long was it before you let Felix explain it to you?"

"The night of the awards show. The night that you left, got drunk and slept with Lauren."

I snapped my eyes up to hers. "How did you…"

"Do you really think that she was gonna waste the opportunity to tell me if she saw me? Come on, Edward," Bella chuckled. "Don't worry, though. I know that you don't remember it."

"That doesn't make it any better, Bella."

"I know."

We sat there and talked until the sky turned dark and the stars came out. It wasn't until Bella shivered that I realized the temperature had dropped.

"Come on, let's get you home." I helped her off the hood of my car and opened her door, closing it once she was settled.

We were almost back to her place when I spoke again. "Bella, for what it's worth, I'm sorry. I should have handled things differently that day. I should have done a lot of things different throughout our relationship, but I can't take any of that back now. I can only hope that you will forgive me and we can move on from here."

"I forgave you a long time ago. I'm sorry, too, Edward. I should have been more of a grown up and stayed to hear your explanation instead of running. I hope that we can move past the past and look toward the future, whatever that brings."

"There's nothing to forgive, Bella. Looking to the future sounds good to me." I pulled into her driveway and shut off the car before turning in my seat to face her. "I know that you are getting ready for the fight of your life. I just want to be there to help, in whatever capacity you will allow."

I watched as her eyes filled, then she brought her hand to my cheek. "Let's just keep going from here and we'll see what happens. One day at a time. Okay?"

I smiled and nodded. "Okay."

**AN: Did this help you understand Bella any better? Her explanation was long over do, but so was their talk. Did it go how you expected? All songs can be heard in my FB group Momma's BookCase. If you aren't a member, then come on by and request to join. Leave me your thoughts.**


	18. Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**AN: Attention please! I know that a lot of you don't read these, but please take a second. This chapter is probably a lot of filler, but it also deals with some medical stuff. Having said that, I am NOT a doctor. Everything that is in this chapter I found on line through Google and Wikipedia. Please go easy on me. **

**EPOV**

I was halfway home when I realized that I needed to tell Bella my story. I quickly took in my surroundings and, seeing no cops, made a fast U-turn and headed back to Bella's.

I parked in her driveway and sprinted to her door. I had my hand raised to knock when the door swung open.

"Edward?"

I cleared my throat. "Sorry, Bella. I hope I didn't wake you."

She shook her head. "No, no. Come on in. Are you okay?"

I stepped over the threshold and into Bella's home for the first time ever. I had been in her old apartment plenty of times, but she had moved here not long after we had broken up.

"Nice place." I commented as I tried to ease my nerves.

"Thanks." Bella led the way to her living room and offered me a seat. "Can I get you anything? Water, tea, soda?"

I shook my head. "No, I'm fine. Um…listen, I realized that I never got to explain myself to you. About my behavior when we were together."

"Edward, you don't…"

"Yes, I do." I looked down at the floor, took a deep breath, and then looked up into her eyes. "Bella, I was messed up for a long time. Before I met you I hadn't been in a real relationship since high school. Everyone before you had been one night stands or just a fling. When I met you…wow…it was like someone flipped a switch and I didn't want to be that guy anymore. Unfortunately for us, I didn't know how to stop."

"Edward…" Bella was shaking her head at me.

"No, Bella. It took me a long time and a lot of therapy to fully understand my problem. Siobhan really opened my eyes to the man that I had become. I had been on a downward spiral ever since Jessica, my high school girlfriend, cheated on me." Once I opened the floodgate, the story came pouring out. I didn't stop speaking until I had told Bella everything. When I was finally silent, Bella was looking at me with tears on her face.

"Edward, I…uh, I wish I knew what to say."

"You don't have to say anything, Bells. I just needed you to know."

Bella sat in silence for a minute. I watched the different emotions play over her face and wished I could read minds. I sat in agony waiting for her to say something—anything—and when I thought that I couldn't take the silence anymore, she spoke.

"Edward, we can play the whole 'who did what to whom in our relationship' game all we want. In the end though, we both screwed up. Either one of us could have done things differently, but we both allowed our pasts to stay in between us. In the end, we just weren't strong enough to stay together, no matter how much we loved each other."

I licked my suddenly dry lips before I asked the question that I desperately needed an answer to. "Bella, do you…"

"What?"

"Do you think that maybe there…that we might ever get another chance?"

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I sat on the table in Dr. George Alistair's office, waiting for him to tell me if he could help me freeze some of my eggs or not. I wasn't going to let cancer rob me of my ability to have children in the future. I wasn't even sure I wanted to have children until I was threatened with never being able to.

A knock on the door broke me from my thoughts. "Miss Swan?"

"Yes." I watched as the door was slowly pushed open.

A short man in a white lab coat came into the room, his hand held out for introductions. "I'm Dr. Alistair. I understand you are interested in having some eggs harvested. May I ask why?"

I looked at the doctor and explained my situation. He nodded and took notes, but never said a word. "So what do you think, Doctor? Can you help me?"

"When is your surgery?"

"Next week. Is that a problem?"

I watched as the doctor pulled his glasses from his face and looked me dead in the eye. "Actually, yes. I'm sorry, but the process takes approximately two weeks to complete. That is from the day that you would be injected with the hormones until I actually harvest your eggs."

I was stunned. What was I going to do? I sat there and stared at the doctor as he droned on and on about procedures and costs and other such nonsense that I cared nothing about.

"What if I postponed my surgery," I interrupted, "just long enough for you to harvest my eggs?"

"Miss Swan, Isabella, what you are asking is highly unethical. You are asking me to allow…"

I held up my hand. "It's not your decision. It's mine. I'll make the call. If my doctor agrees, then there should be no reason for you _not_ to perform the procedure and give me the injection."

I smiled even though the doctor had reluctantly agreed. Pulling my phone from the pocket of my jeans, I dialed the number to Carlisle's office. When I left my appointment, it was after receiving a hormone injection that would bring more than one egg forward. Carlisle had agreed to wait so that my chances of having children weren't ruined.

**~~STM~~**

I lay in the pre-op bed and stared angrily at the ceiling. I was sure that if it were possible, lasers would be shooting from my eyes and burning a hole where I was staring. I had been poked and prodded for the last two weeks, and although Dr. Alistair had warned me that I would have mood swings, he didn't tell me that I would be a complete bitch. Everyone was staying away from me right now for their own protection. At this point even _I_ didn't want to be around me.

"Miss Swan?" a soft voice said from the door.

I looked up and saw Dr. Alistair's nurse staring at me. "What?" I growled.

"Mood swings?" she giggled.

"You could say that."

The short woman walked further into the room and picked up my chart. "I see that you received the last shot a day and a half ago, correct?"

I nodded. "Yes, thank God!"

"Okay, Dr. Alistair will be here in just a few minutes. I'm going to go ahead and get your IV started. You'll receive your anesthesia soon. You brought someone with you today, right?"

"Yeah. I had to drag him with me, but he's here. No one wants anything to do with me lately."

"Well, that will stop once your hormones get back to normal." The nurse sterilized my arm, warned me about a small stick, and then inserted the needle into my vein. When she was finished, I had a nice amount of tape on my arm to keep the IV from slipping out. "Okay, you're all set. Dr. Alistair will be here in a few minutes."

It wasn't long before the doctor came in and explained to me—again—what he would be doing. I nodded, but I really just wanted to get on with it. He finally left to scrub up. The door had barely shut behind him before two orderlies walked in and began wheeling me to surgery. Once there, I slid to the other bed and then a nurse injected me with something that made me feel warm all over.

I woke up to a different room and someone talking to me. I couldn't make it out, so I just agreed and then tried to go back to sleep. When I woke again, I was back in my pre-op room, only this time I wasn't alone.

"Hey."

I turned my head toward the voice. "Hey," I rasped.

"Dr. Alistair said that it went fine," Edward told me with a smile.

"Good. Did he say when I can go home?"

Edward shook his head while reaching for the cup that was sitting at his elbow. He stuck a straw into it and then brought it to my lips. I opened my mouth and began to suck the cool liquid in greedily. When I had enough, I let go of the straw and Edward put the cup down.

I closed my eyes and drifted in and out of consciousness for the next hour. Someone finally came in and told me what to expect over the next couple of weeks and then had me sign papers, discharging me.

"Do you need help getting dressed?" Edward offered.

Having Edward help me get dressed was the last thing that I wanted. "No, but can you help me get over to the bathroom?"

I grabbed my bag of clothes and then, with Edward's help, made it to the bathroom. I shut and locked the door, then leaned against the sink. After splashing my face with cold water in an attempt to fully wake up, I started getting dressed.

It wasn't long before I had my clothes on and was walking back out to the room. The nurse was back, and I stood silently for a minute and watched her flirting with Edward. What impressed me the most, though, was the fact that he wasn't even acknowledging her. He was doing something on his phone.

"Can we leave now?" I asked, making my presence known.

Edward looked up, relief evident in his expression. "Yeah, let's go."

He stood up and walked over to me, taking my hand and leading me to the door.

"Miss Swan, you'll have to ride in this." The nurse was pushing a wheelchair at me.

"I don't think so," I scoffed.

"Sorry," she shrugged, "it's hospital policy."

I sighed in exasperation and sat in the chair. I also ended up waiting…and waiting…and waiting. When I finally had enough, I huffed. "Are you done flirting now? I would like to get the hell out of here!"

I heard a squeak, followed by Edward's booming laughter. "Let's go home, Bells."

I smiled, knowing he said 'home' more for the nurse's benefit than mine, but I also found myself wishing that it was true somehow.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I sat in an uncomfortable chair in the hospital waiting room and drank a horrible cup of coffee. I was doing anything and everything to keep my mind busy, but nothing could keep my thoughts from the operating room where my father was trying to save Bella's life.

"How're you doing, Edward?"

I looked up and saw Bella's dad, Charlie, taking the empty seat next to me. I wasn't sure what the right answer was. "I'm okay. How are you?"

Charlie sighed. "Well, I wish that my daughter wasn't in the fight of her life at twenty-eight, but I wasn't given the choice."

"I understand. I would take her place if I could," I told him, surprised that we actually had some common ground.

"Would you, Edward? Why?"

I looked into the eyes that were so much like Bella's and answered truthfully. "Because I still love her, Sir."

Charlie looked at me for a minute before nodding. Without another word, he got up and walked back over to sit beside Kate and Garrett.

Two hours later, we were all still congregated in the waiting area waiting for any news, when I looked up and saw my dad walking toward us.

"Dad?" I asked, causing everyone to look up.

Carlisle smiled. "It went well. I think we got it all, but the chemo will kill what I missed. She'll be in recovery for about an hour, and then they'll take her to her room. I'm going to keep her here for a few days, though. I want to make sure that there are no problems. It's possible that she could have some issues swallowing, eating and speaking, so I want to monitor her here."

"What about her voice, Doc? Will she be able to sing anymore?"

"Only time will tell, Marcus. She won't be using her voice for a while, anyway. We need to give her throat time to heal." Carlisle looked at the rest of us. "I'll have someone come tell you when you can see her."

I watched my dad turn and then disappear down the corridor he had just come from.

"Well that's a relief." Charlie was the first to break the silence.

Murmurs of agreement went around the room but I didn't say a word. I just sat down in my chair and listened as they all discussed who was going to help Bella get to her appointments. The only problem was that no one seemed to be available. It was my turn to break the silence.

"I can do it."

All eyes were suddenly on me.

"Are you sure, Edward?" Alice wanted to know.

I nodded. "I took her to her last surgery and then stayed with her the whole day. I think I can handle this."

"Edward, Bella is most likely gonna need someone to move in and take care of her after all of her treatments," Kate piped in.

"I'm aware of that, Kate." I stood up. "I am prepared to do whatever Bella needs me to do. If that means take care of her, then that's what I am going to do." I was steadfast in my promise.

I saw from the corner of my eye, Charlie stand up and walk over to me. "Thank you, Edward. I know that Bella will be in good hands with you to care for her."

Once the details were all worked out and the girls had agreed to take shifts when I would be at the studio working on our new album, we all sat back and relaxed. It wasn't long after that that Carlisle came back and said that Bella was up for visitors.

"She's asking for you, Edward."

**AN: Thanks for reading and I hope that I didn't screw up too badly. Leave me some love. Until next time.**


	19. Chapter 18

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**AN: Please allow me to take a minute and say a few words. Again, I am not a physician, nurse, or any other medical person. I apologize if I have gotten anything wrong. The only person that I have ever known with cancer had radiation treatments and not chemotherapy. I may have taken some creative liberties, but again, this is FICTION. **

******TISSUE WARNING******

**EPOV**

The days following Bella's release from the hospital were tough. My dad had administered the first chemo treatment an hour before she was discharged. He had explained the side effects to Charlie, who would be staying with Bella for the first couple of days. Those side effects started about two hours after she was home, which I only know because Charlie called me in a panic.

_I rolled over in my bed and reached for my vibrating cell phone. "Hello?" I mumbled._

"_Edward! It's Charlie. I'm sorry to call you so late, but I don't know what else to do."_

_I sat up quickly and flipped on my bedside lamp. "What's going on, Charlie?"_

"_She's so sick, Edward. I don't know what to do, and it's not like she can talk to me to tell me what she needs. I need some help."_

"_Okay, give me thirty minutes and I'll be there."_

"_Thanks, Edward."_

I had driven over there, walked in the door, and found Charlie, sitting on the couch with his head in his hands. When he looked up at me, he was white as a sheet.

"She's so sick. I wasn't expecting anything like this."

I nodded. "Okay, where is she?"

Charlie pointed and I had walked toward the back of the house. I had never been this far inside before, so it was pure luck that I had found her. She was curled up on her side in the bathroom.

"Oh, Bella."

That had been the longest night I had ever had. Bella was finally able to keep down water, and then eventually some broth. We had to be careful what kind of food we gave her since her throat was still raw from the surgery, though. She had finally fallen asleep about three hours after I had arrived. Charlie had immediately passed out on the couch while I had been content to sit in the chair in Bella's room.

It had taken a couple of days and a call from my dad to get some Phenergan for her, but she finally stopped vomiting. Certain foods still made her nauseous, but we knew that these were the side effects of the chemo running through her body.

Bella had refused all help and had insisted that Charlie and I both go home, that she was feeling much better and was just going to rest. I had no idea at the time that she was intent on driving herself to the hospital for her next treatment. It wasn't until Dad called that I found out.

**~~STM~~**

I was sitting at my piano tapping out a tune when my phone rang. I stopped playing and picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Edward! Why in the hell is my patient driving herself to her chemo appointments?! I thought you were bringing her?!"

"Whoa, Dad! What the fuck are you talking about? Bella told me her appointment was tomorrow."

I heard my dad sigh. "Edward, her appointment is today. You need to get here so that you can drive her home."

"Alright, I'm on my way." I hung up the phone, grabbed my keys and was out the door two minutes later. I called Jasper on my way.

"Hey, Ed. What's up?"

"Meet me outside and tell Ali to follow you in her car. I need you to drive Bella's car back to her place."

"Okay, but why?"

"When did she tell you her next treatment was?"

"Tomorrow," Jasper said immediately.

"Eeh, wrong answer. She is at the hospital now."

"Wait, what? She told us it was tomorrow."

I heard some shuffling, and then Alice came on the line. "What do you mean it's not tomorrow?"

"Exactly what I said to Jazz, Ali. My dad called me and said that it was today," I explained as I turned onto their street. "I'm down the street. Have Jazz waiting outside." I hung up before she could respond.

I pulled up to their house just as Jasper jogged out to the curb. I stopped just long enough for him to get in and then was off again.

"Alice will meet me at Bella's in half an hour."

I nodded, never taking my eyes off the road. "What the hell is she thinking, Jasper?"

"I don't know, Ed. Maybe she wants to be independent for as long as she can."

"Well, that shit stops now!" I slammed my hand on the wheel.

The rest of the ride was silent. When I pulled into the hospital, I quickly found a place to park and the pair of us walked inside, still not speaking.

I found my dad and he showed us where Bella was. He then left us alone with her.

"Why, Bella?" I asked quietly.

**BPOV**

The minute that I saw Edward and Jasper walk around the curtain, I knew I was in trouble. When I saw the barely concealed anger in Edward's eyes, I wasn't sure what to expect. What he said first was not at all what I thought was coming.

"Why, Bella?"

I sighed and looked down. "I'm sorry. I just thought that I could handle it myself," I whispered, still unable to really use my voice.

Edward walked over and knelt in front of me. "Bella, do you remember how sick you got last time? You can't drive." He stood up and towered over me. "Now give me your keys. Jasper is going to take your car home."

Pointing at my jacket that was lying on the chair, I watched as Edward retrieved my keys, handed them to Jasper and had a quick conversation before turning back to me.

"Has Carlisle started the treatment?"

I nodded and watched Jasper leave while Edward got comfortable in the chair across from me.

"Okay, listen, Bella, this is how we're gonna do things," Edward started. I raised my eyebrow at his tone. "Don't give me that look. You need some help, especially after your treatments. I am moving in temporarily, so get that look off your face. I'll be there to take you to your appointments, help you when you're sick, and anything else that you might need."

I started to say something but quickly shut my mouth, resigning myself to the fact that I did need help. I knew that if anyone was going to move in to my house and take care of me, I wanted it to be Edward; I just wasn't going to tell _him_ that.

"I'm glad to see that you're not gonna argue with me," he chuckled. "When you're done here, I'll drive you home. Alice and Jasper are going to stay with you long enough for me to get home and pack up some of my things. When I get back, I'll make us something to eat, okay?"

I nodded my head and then looked at him. "Thanks, Edward," I whispered.

He just nodded and sat back while the chemicals that would hopefully save my life entered my system.

**~~STM~~**

I wanted to die. The poison that was running through my body was slowly killing me. I was once again lying on the floor of my bathroom, trying not to call out for Edward but knowing that it was futile.

Over the last month, he had been my rock. He held my hair when I was sick. He carried me when I was too weak to walk and sang me to sleep when the pain in my stomach was so bad that I couldn't concentrate on anything else.

"Edward," I called weakly. When he didn't appear within his normal thirty seconds, I tried again. "Edward!" I finally heard his footsteps coming toward me and sagged in relief.

His bronze head peeked around the corner. When he saw me lying on the floor, he frowned. "Baby, you are supposed to tell me when you feel sick."

"Just get me up, please."

Edward leaned down and slipped his arms beneath my legs and around my back. He lifted me up, carried me back to my room and laid me gently on my bed.

"Do you need anything?" he asked after covering me with the quilt.

"Kill me," I requested.

I watched the pained expression cross Edward's face before he masked it. "Bella, I am not going to kill you. We knew this was going to be tough. Dad thinks that it's working, so you just need to hang in there for a little while longer."

I nodded and rolled over, away from him.

**EPOV**

I sighed and left Bella's bedroom. I could feel her closing herself off and I wasn't sure how to help her. I thought about asking Siobhan to come talk to her, but I was afraid that would be a conflict of interest since she was my therapist. I needed to talk to my dad.

After making sure that Bella was asleep, I sat down in the living room and called Carlisle.

"Edward? Son, what's wrong? Is Bella…"

"She's sleeping." I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "I think…no, I _know_ that she is depressed, Dad. Today she asked me to kill her. I don't know what to do anymore."

"Edward, that is the chemo talking. Bella's body is extremely weak and she is exhausted. That can affect the mind. I think it's time to get her in a support group or into private therapy."

"I thought about that. I don't think Siobhan could do it, but I haven't asked her so I don't know for sure. She's the only therapist I know."

"Bella needs to talk to someone that handles cancer patients. She needs to know that she is talking to someone who understands what she is going through. I'll make a call. I don't think with her celebrity status that group therapy would be a good idea. I'll call you back in an hour or so."

"Okay, Dad, thanks." I hung up and sat back, closing my eyes.

I wasn't aware that I had fallen asleep until I felt the couch beside me dip. I sat up quickly and looked over at Bella.

"Hey. Why didn't you holler? I would have carried you out here."

"I'm okay, I can walk. It may be slow, but it can be done." Bella grinned.

"Bella, we need to talk," I started.

"I know, Edward. I'm sorry about this morning."

"It's not just this morning, Bella. I think you need to talk to someone. I don't think group therapy would be a good idea given who you are, so I called my dad and he said that he would make some calls."

"Um…so you think I need therapy?" Bella asked.

"Not like that, but I think you should talk to someone who can understand what you're going through. I can help you with the outward things, but I've never had cancer, Bella. I can't help with your mind."

"Okay, I'll talk to someone." She sighed and leaned her head on my shoulder. "Thanks, Edward. You've already been a big help."

I turned my head and kissed the top of hers. "I love you, Bella. I would do anything you needed me to."

"I know," she said quietly.

It didn't escape my attention that she didn't say the words back, but I knew that she wasn't there yet. One day…hopefully.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

"Bella, I have to go to the studio today. Rose and Alice are going to take you to your treatment and then your sister is gonna sit with you until I get home," Edward told me as we ate breakfast.

"Okay." I took a bite of the eggs, then looked back at him. "I have an appointment tomorrow with that therapist your dad found, Kebi. Carlisle said that she is Siobhan's sister."

"Great. I think she can really help you." Edward took our empty plates to the sink.

"I'm going to get cleaned up before the girls get here." I scooted my chair back and walked to the bathroom.

I pulled my shirt over my head and pulled my hair from the band that had been keeping it out of my face. I wasn't prepared for the sight that greeted me when I laid the band on the counter. Long strands of my hair were wrapped around it. When I looked at my shirt, I noticed that it, too, had long hairs on it.

Looking in the mirror, I combed my fingers through my hair. When I brought my hand back to my face, it was full of my brown locks. My hands began to shake and I started screaming before I could stop myself. The tears came right away as I began to pull clump after clump of hair away from my scalp.

"Bella!" Edward halted beside me, having heard my screams.

I looked up at him, the tears pouring from my eyes, and held up my hands. "It's…falling…out," I sobbed.

"Oh, Bella." Edward wrapped me up in his arms and held me as I cried. I cried for my hair, cried for what I was going through and cried for what I still had to face.

When I ran out of tears, I looked at Edward and made a decision. "I need you to do something for me."

"Anything," he agreed.

"Shave my head."

**AN: Thanks for reading. I hope that you are still with me. Leave me your thoughts. **


	20. Chapter 19

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

I sat in front of the mirror in the bathroom and rubbed a hand over my newly bald head. Edward had been wonderful about answering my request. He hadn't fought me, he had just reached for the shears.

"Bella?"

"I'm in the bathroom."

I turned and looked just as Kate's head peeked around the corner. "Rose and Alice couldn't come so…" Kate stopped. "Bella, your hair!"

Seeing her reaction brought the tears back. "It started to fall out."

"Oh, Bella. Please tell me that you didn't shave it by yourself," Kate spoke as she walked forward to touch my head.

"She didn't." Edward's voice came from the doorway.

I smiled at him but quickly looked away when I saw the sadness in his eyes. I didn't notice that he had moved until he was standing in front of me.

"Kate, can you give us a minute, please?" I requested.

"Bella, look at me." Edward put his hand under my chin and lifted my face to his. When my eyes met his, not only did I see the sadness for what had just transpired, but I also saw the love. It was enough to take my breath away. "Bella, what I just did—I hated. But you needed it and I needed to do it for you. Baby, your hair will grow back, and when it does, I'll be here to run my hands through it."

I nodded. "I know. Thank you, Edward."

"I have to go. You gonna be okay?"

I smiled up at him. "I'll be fine. Kate is going to take me to my appointment and then bring me back here to puke."

"Bella…" Edward groaned.

"Sorry. Go, I'll be here when you get home."

"Okay." He leaned down and pressed his lips to my forehead softly. "Call me if you need anything. I love you."

He was gone before I could say anything else. I wanted so badly to tell him that I loved him too, but I couldn't.

I walked out of the bathroom and looked for my sister. I found her in the living room. "Hey."

"Hey." Kate looked at me for a second. "He really loves you, Bells."

I sighed and sat on the couch. "I love him, too, Kate."

"Have you told him?"

"No."

"Why?"

"Because, I'm scared. What if I don't survive this?"

"All the more reason, Bella," she said as she got up from the chair and walked toward my room. "And you _are_ gonna beat this!"

It was a few minutes before Kate walked back out of my room, a blue silk scarf in her hand. I smiled at her intent and leaned forward. Once she had the scarf around my head, she helped me get dressed for my appointment.

"Do you need anything to eat before we go?"

I rolled my eyes. "What's the point? It's just gonna come back up anyway."

Kate sighed but nodded and then led the way to her car.

**~~STM~~**

"Okay, you're all set," Carlisle told me as he finished setting up the IV that would deliver my chemo. "Just think, only one more treatment after this one."

"Thanks, Carlisle."

"I'll be back in a little while, Bells." Carlisle patted my hand, then left the room.

I sat back and sighed. One more treatment. I looked down at myself; I was a shadow of the girl I used to know. My skin was pale—almost translucent—and I had dark circles under my eyes. My cheeks had hollowed out, too. I was a ghost of my former self.

I must have fallen asleep, because Carlisle was beside me taking the IV out and cleaning up my arm when I opened my eyes.

"Okay, Bella, you're all set. Call me if the sickness is too much."

I nodded. "I will. Hopefully it won't be as bad as it has been. I'm supposed to meet with Kebi today."

"Bella, if it gets bad, call her and reschedule. I'm sure that she'll understand. Kebi is a cancer survivor herself."

"Okay." I pushed up from the chair and followed him from the room. We met up with Kate outside the door.

"Ready?" she asked, putting her magazine down.

I nodded.

"Okay, so what do you want to do?"

"Take me home, Kate. It won't be long until I start to feel the effects."

Kate nodded reluctantly and then took me home.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

"What are you talking about? A tour? I can't go on tour! Who would take care of Bella?" I complained to Caius.

"Edward, I'm sure that Mom would move in to take care of her. We have an obligation." Emmett looked at me like I was a crazy person.

"But, it's…"

"No, Edward! This is our _career_ you're messing with. Bella will be fine and I am sure the Mom would be willing to take care of her," Jasper jumped in.

"Edward, we worked too hard to get where we are," Garrett began, "If Bella is more important to you, then we can just find someone to take your place."

"Fuck you, Garrett! What if it was Kate? Or Rose, Emmett? Or Alice, Jasper? You want to replace me that's fucking fine, but I wrote most of the music—you'll have to buy them from me if you want to perform those songs."

I sat back and crossed my arms. I couldn't believe that I was dealing with this shit. Bella was my life, and if anything happened to her, they wouldn't _have_ to worry about replacing me…I would follow her.

"Okay. Let's just calm down," Caius spoke up. "Edward, let's see what kind of arrangements you can work out and then we'll talk about the tour. The rest of you need to put yourself in Edward's shoes. You guys are wrong."

"Fine," I spat. "Let me make some calls. I'll get back to you tomorrow, Caius." I stood up and headed for the door.

"Edward…"

I turned around and glared at Emmett. "Save it! You need to think about what you just said to me. All of you." Then I left, driving at a reckless speed back to the house and to Bella.

**~~STM~~**

I was still fuming when I pulled into the garage. I slammed the door to my car and then the door to the house. It wasn't until Kate came running in and shushing me that I realized where I was.

"Sorry, Kate. I'm a little pissed off. How is she?"

"She's sleeping right now. She was a little sick earlier, but she says that it might get worse."

"It probably will. I'll take it from here. Thanks for helping her," I said while I got a glass down to fill with water.

"She's my sister, Edward. You don't have to thank me."

I nodded and sipped at my water. When I looked up, I caught Kate staring at me. "What?"

"Why are you so pissed?"

"Ask your insensitive husband."

Kate shook her head. "_You_ tell me. They told you about the tour, right?"

"Yeah, then they told me that if I couldn't or wouldn't get someone else to take care of Bella, they would replace me." I sneered.

"What!?"

"Like I said, ask Garrett."

Kate didn't say another word; she just spun on her heel and stormed out of the house. Hearing her tires squeal as she left the driveway, I couldn't help but smile. Garrett, and probably my brothers, were about to have their asses handed to them.

I was just about to go call my mother when I heard the bathroom door slam and knew that Bella was up. I refilled my glass with water and walked down the hall to where she was. Slowly, I pushed the door open, and what I saw just about broke my heart. Bella was leaning her head in her arm as it rested on the side of the toilet bowl.

"Bella?"

"No, nothing."

I nodded and walked over to her. Picking her up in my arms, I carried her back to her bed. I laid her down, then went back to the bathroom to retrieve the glass of water. I needed to get something in her body to get rid of her dry heaves.

"Bella, you should have eaten something. You know that you get the heaves when you don't. You also know that it hurts more."

"Don't lecture me, Edward," she groaned as she sat up. After drinking the water greedily, she handed me back the empty glass. "I need more, please."

I got up and refilled her glass, but waited before I took it to her. I leaned my hands on the counter and stared at nothing. Bella's illness was starting to take its toll on me. I was exhausted and tired of seeing her in so much pain. It was time for me to make an appointment with Siobhan; I needed to vent to someone who wouldn't judge me on my feelings.

Snapping out of my trance, I walked back to Bella's room and handed her the glass. "I need to make a few phone calls. Holler if you need me, okay?"

"Okay. Is everything alright, Edward?"

I just nodded and gave her a small smile before turning and heading to my own room.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

He was lying, but I wasn't about to say anything to him. I had my secrets and Edward was allowed to have his. I sat on my bed and sipped my water, waiting for the inevitable. I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I knew, Edward was waking me up to take me to my appointment with Kebi.

The office was very tranquil. Painted in soft blues and greens, it almost reminded me of a tropical getaway. I leaned on Edward, still tired and feeling weak from my treatment, but I wanted to get this first meeting over with.

"Isabella Swan?"

I looked up. "Yes?"

"The doctor will see you now. Go through that door there." The receptionist pointed to the door on my right.

"Are you okay?" Edward whispered.

I nodded as he helped me stand and walked me to the door. It opened and a tall, dark haired, dark skinned woman greeted us.

"You must be Bella and Edward. Please, come in."

Edward led me to the couch and then turned to go.

"Thank you, Edward. We'll be done in about an hour."

"Okay. Uh, she had a treatment today, so you may need a trash can," he warned.

I smiled and Kebi laughed. "Thanks for the tip." She closed the door and then turned to me. "Do you need anything? Water? Blanket? I know I was always freezing on days that I had my treatments."

"No, I'm okay for now."

"Okay then, let's get started." Kebi smiled and took the seat across from me.

An hour later, I was feeling lighter. We hadn't discussed everything, but we had made a good start. When she opened the door and Edward walked in, I smiled.

"I'm tired."

"Okay, let's get you home." He helped me stand and we walked to the elevator.

As we stood there waiting, I looked up at his face. "Are you gonna tell me why you were so upset earlier?"

Edward looked down at me. "Let's get you home first, okay? Then I'll tell you."

Once we got home, I decided that I was a little bit hungry and asked Edward to make me some soup. He got me settled on the couch and wrapped my blanket around my shoulders before going to the kitchen.

I turned on the TV and started flipping through the channels. I stopped when I heard the announcer speak my name.

"_In entertainment news—Izzie Swan continues her treatments for cancer. A source at the hospital tells us that she only has one more treatment left. We also received this picture today from an anonymous email address, showing Izzie leaving the hospital with her sister, Kate Cox. _

"_Rumors are circulating that Edward Cullen, front man for the group HeartStrong, has moved in to care for Izzie. However, Mr. Cullen's reps were unavailable to comment on the truth of that rumor."_

I sat in shock and watched as a grainy picture of me and Kate walking to her car was put up on screen.

"Edward!"

"What!?" he asked as he came running into the living room.

I just pointed at the TV, unable to explain. Edward looked at the TV and muttered, "Fuck."

He stormed out of the room, and a few minutes later, I heard him talking to someone on the phone.

"I don't give a shit, Dad. You need to find out who in your office is feeding information about Bella to the press. I am about to call Charlie so that he can get his tech guys on that picture. I know that he has _someone_ working for him that can hack into a computer system."

I didn't move. I couldn't fathom who would be telling the press my progress and then taking a picture of me. Edward and my family had intentionally kept me away from the press, not wanting any pictures to be leaked. We…_I_ didn't want the sympathy.

"Charlie? Hey… Yeah, we saw the story. Is there any way that you can have one of your guys check out that email?" I heard Edward ask my dad. "Yeah, Carlisle is checking to see who the leak is at the hospital. I'll get Marcus on it, too."

I stopped listening after a while. I knew that Edward, my dad, and Carlisle would get it figured out. I also knew that Marcus would make heads roll.

**~~STM~~**

The call came the next day. Marcus showed up at my house just as I was answering the phone.

"Hi, Dad." The doorbell rang before I could say anything else. "Edward, can you go see who that is?"

"Bella?"

"I'm here, Dad. What's up?"

"I found out where the email was sent from."

"You did? Where?" I looked at Edward as he walked back in the room, Marcus following behind him.

"It came from a cell phone. The number that it originated from is 802-555-7684. Do you know that number?"

I was silent. I knew who that number belonged to. I had dialed it many times before I met Edward.

"Bells?"

I blinked and looked at Edward and Marcus as I answered my father. "Yeah, Dad. It's Jacob's phone number."

**EPOV**

I was livid. Why was that fucker messing with her now? It's been five years. Before I could comment, my cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Edward, I found out who was telling the press," Carlisle told me.

"Who?"

"Her name is Leah Black. Apparently she is married to Bella's ex, and he convinced her to help him make some money by selling information about Bella's treatment to the tabloids."

"Wow! How did you get her to tell you all of that?"

I heard my dad laugh. "I didn't. When I found out it as her, I called the police. She violated her patient confidentiality agreement. She's actually looking at jail time."

I laughed then. No amount of money is worth going to jail. "Did she tell you where Jacob was?"

Carlisle rattled off the address and I looked over at Marcus. He nodded and started to the door. "Thanks, Dad. I've gotta go. I'll talk to you this evening."

"Alright, Son."

I looked at Bella, who was still on the phone with her dad. "I'll be back in a little bit."

Bella nodded but kept on talking. It had been a while since she spoke to Charlie, so I let her be and joined Marcus at his car.

"Edward, I'm not getting arrested for this," Marcus told me.

"Look, Marcus, Bella is your client, but she is the love of my life. This asshole is messing with her. I'll handle it, you just keep _me _out of jail."

"Alright." Marcus sighed and started the car.

We pulled up to the address and I got out. Once I was on the sidewalk, Marcus pulled away to go park on the next block. I walked up to the door of the small home and knocked.

I heard a dog bark and then a man yelling at it to shut up. He yanked open the door and I was a little surprised. _This_ was Jacob Black? What had Bella ever seen in him? The person standing before me was tall with a russet colored complexion, and had a pot belly from what looked like too many beers. He even had one in his hand. To top it off, his clothes were stained and reeked of body odor.

"Who the fuck are you?"

Instead of answering, I drew my fist back and landed a punch right to his nose. I heard the crunch and knew it was broken. I should have finished there, but I wanted to hurt this loser.

"Stay away from Bella," I seethed as I landed another punch to his gut. That hit was enough to bring him to his knees and he moaned as he held his abdomen.

I turned and walked down the sidewalk when I heard him yell, "You're done, Cullen!"

I turned back with a smirk. "I thought you didn't know who I was?"

It was probably two hours after Marcus dropped me off, that the doorbell rang. I ran to answer it, not wanting the noise to wake Bella up. I opened the door to reveal two uniformed officers standing before me.

"Edward Cullen?"

"Yes, can I help you?"

"Mr. Cullen you are under arrest…"


	21. Chapter 20

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**BPOV**

I sat at my piano for the first time in months since I was actually feeling a little bit better. I was slowly getting my appetite back and was starting to sleep a little better at night. My only problem…I missed Edward.

He had been gone for a month already. He'd been reluctant to go on this tour, especially after the way that the guys had acted, but after Kate gave them all a tongue lashing, they came and apologized—to both of us.

_Edward looked up at me from the sheet music he was currently filling. "Are you expecting anyone?"_

"_No. Not unless you went and beat up someone else." I grinned. _

_The charges that had been filed against Edward didn't stick, especially since Marcus provided an alibi for him._

"_Ha ha, Bella."_

"_Just get the door, Edward." _

_He did, but came back with a surprised look on his face. Following behind him were Emmett, Jasper and Garrett. _

_To say I was shocked to see them would be an understatement. The three of them hadn't been to see me since my surgery. No calls, no cards_…_nothing. I was a little resentful, so I couldn't understand why they were here now._

"_What's going on?" I asked__,__ my curiosity getting the better of me._

_Jasper must have been the spokesman, because he started to speak first. "We owe you both an apology. We've been insensitive pricks_…_more focused on ourselves and making the almighty buck than we have on your health, Bella or your feelings, Edward. We're sorry."_

"_Yeah, what we said to you was way out of line__,"__ Emmett piped in._

"_Wait a minute," I interrupted. "What did you say to him?"_

"_You didn't tell her?" Garrett wanted to know._

_I watched as Edward shook his head. "No, she had a treatment that day and then all that shit with Black happened. I didn't want to upset her."_

"_Um, hello? Sitting right here. Tell me now," I requested._

_Edward turned and looked at me. "I didn't tell you because you were so sick that day. Caius told me about a tour. I don't want to leave you and I told them that. The guys were_…_less than sensitive."_

"_Edward_…_" Garrett interrupted. "Bella, we basically told him that he needed to think about the group, and that if he wasn't gonna put us first, then we would find someone to replace him."_

_I was stunned. I looked at Edward, who was hanging his head, not meeting my eyes. When I looked at the other three, they had the same posture. _

"_I am so_…_disappointed. In all four of you," I started. "You guys haven't been to see me _once_ since I got out of the hospital and began my treatments. You haven't called, and I know for _damn_ sure that you haven't checked on Edward. Do you have any idea how hard this must be for him? Look at me." None of them raised their heads. "Look at me!"_

_Six sets of eyes finally looked up. "Edward has been here every day. He has watched me puke until I have nothing left. He watched me cry when my hair started to fall out. He shaved my head because I couldn't bear it. He has watched me deteriorate before his very eyes, and yet he's still here. And you have the audacity to tell him that you're gonna replace him! You are all unbelievable!"_

"_Bella, stop," Edward said quietly._

"_No, Edward, I won't stop. You should have told me. What, did you think that I couldn't handle it? I'm sick, not dead!"_

"_Bella, I hate the thought of leaving you. You have another treatment left and I'm the only one that knows how to help you," Edward protested._

"_Edward, you can call your mom or even my dad. Please, go do this tour. Do it for your fans, do it for me, your brothers. Edward, do it for yourself. You need to get away or you're going to go crazy."_

"_Bella, I_…_" Edward shook his head._

"_Trust me, if I could, I would be out there traveling and singing. You need to do this."_

He called me whenever he could. He had been so worried on the day that I had my last chemo treatment. Kate had called me saying that he was a mess, but I was, too. It was almost like they had given me a triple dose since it was the last time…hopefully.

Esme had been great. She had held my hand when I was screaming from the pangs in my stomach. She wiped my brow when I was sweating, and she held me after I was sick and crying for Edward.

I never told him how bad I was feeling, but I'm sure that he knew.

It was during his time away that I finally realized just how much I did love him. I couldn't wait until he came home so I could tell him.

I sat at my piano waiting for the time to pass, wishing that Edward was with me, because today I would know. Today was the day that I would get my test results. Today I would find out if I had beaten cancer.

"Bella? Are you ready?" I looked up at Esme and nodded. "What was that you were playing?"

"It's called _A Thousand Years_," I told her as I stood and closed the lid over the keys.

"It's beautiful." Esme smiled and walked forward. "Let's go get some good news."

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

We were leaving our twentieth city in the last month and I was tired. I had forgotten how hard touring could be. I missed Bella and was worried about her. My mother had told me that her last treatment was bad. From what she had described, it was the worst one yet. As much as I wanted to go home and be there for her, I knew that she would be pissed if I did.

So I sat on my bus and strummed my guitar while my brothers and Garrett held onto their wives. Since Kate was still our PR person and Rose and Alice did makeup and wardrobe, they got to travel with us. Lucky for the guys.

"Have you talked to Bella today?" Kate asked.

I shook my head. "She was having some tests done. She hopes to have the results back in a week or so."

"Is this the test to find out if the cancer is gone?" Alice wanted to know.

"Yeah."

"It'll be good news, Edward. I have a good feeling about it."

"I hope so, Alice. I don't think I can watch her fade away. I love her too much."

I put my guitar down and sat back, closing my eyes as we continued on to our next destination.

**~~STM~~**

"Just call her, okay? Please, Kate."

"Okay, Edward."

After getting Kate to agree to call Bella, I walked back out on the stage. We were on the last leg of our tour and I couldn't wait to get home.

"How's everyone doing tonight?" The cheers were deafening as I spoke. "Glad to hear it. We're gonna slow things down a bit. This is the new single from our new album, due out in stores next month."

I took a seat behind the piano and started the music. I had written this one when Bella first started receiving treatments.

_Ordinary, no_

_Really don't think so_

_Not a love this true_

_Common destiny_

_We were meant to be_

_Me and you_

_Like a perfect scene_

_From a movie screen_

_We're a dream come true_

_Suited perfectly_

_For eternity_

_Me and you_

_Every day, I need you even more_

_And the nighttime, too_

_There's no way I could ever let you go_

_Even if I wanted to_

_Every day I live_

_Try my best to give_

_All I have to you_

_Thank the stars above_

_That we share this love_

_Me and you_

I met Jasper's eyes as he broke into the guitar riff. He had a soft smile on his face. He had known who I had written the song about before the others. Although, they had been jerks in the beginning, they had all come on board with unfailing support.

_Every day, I need you even more_

_And the nighttime, too_

_There's no way I could ever let you go_

_Even if I wanted to_

_Ordinary, no_

_Really don't think so_

_Just a precious few_

_Ever make it last_

_Get as lucky as_

_Me and you_

_Me and you _

Following the show, I was sitting in my hotel when my phone rang. I picked it up quickly. "Hello?"

"Edward?" Bella's voice greeted me.

"Hey, Baby. How are you feeling?"

"I'm okay. Kate called me, Edward. When did you write that song?" Bella's voice was soft as she spoke in my ear.

"I wrote it at the beginning of your illness."

"It was beautiful, thank you." She sounded like she was crying.

"Baby, don't cry." My heart was breaking; I wanted to hold her so badly.

"I'm sorry, I just miss you. When are you coming home?"

My heart soared at her question. I looked at the itinerary really quick. "It looks like four more days. I miss you, Bella. I have to go. I love you." I knew that she wouldn't say it back, but I needed her to know it.

"Bye," she whispered.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

"Marcus, I want to see if my voice has changed. Would you please get the band, Heidi, and Jane to come to the house? I want _you_ to come too. Please!" I begged.

"Okay, Bella. Give me a few hours and I'll have everyone there. I'm assuming you want Felix to bring his snare and the rest of the guys their guitars?"

"Please. Thanks, Marcus." I smiled.

"Yep."

We disconnected and I walked to my room. I took a quick shower and got dressed, then ran a hand over the hair that had grown back. It felt weird, but at least I was no longer bald. My hair had always grown fast, but even I was surprised at how much I had. I was able to actually spike it with gel. Well…if I was a guy I would.

Esme came in just as I finished up.

"Should I wear a hat? They haven't seen me with hair in a while," I grinned.

"Whatever you want, Sweetie. I think it will be fine." Esme smiled.

"I talked to Edward last night." I sat down on the edge of my bed as I spoke. "He said that they only have four days left on the tour. I want to tell him so bad, but I know that I should wait."

"He'll be here before you know it, Bella. And then you can move on…hopefully together." Esme grasped my hand.

I smiled but made no comment. The doorbell stopped any further conversation. I got up and made my way to the door with a smile on my face for the first time in months.

"Hey, guys." I said as I opened it." Come on in."

"Bella, you look great!" Heidi smiled as she gave me a hug.

"Yeah, girl, I am loving the hair." Jane smiled.

"Aww, thanks." I ushered them into the living room where my piano was. After everyone was comfortable, I told them what I had been up to for the last six months. "I've written a lot of music. Marcus, I think I have my next album with everything that I have."

"Wow, Bells. Are you gonna share or keep me in suspense?"

I laughed. "I'm going to share, but I need you guys to understand something first." I waited for everyone to be paying attention. "I am extremely nervous. I don't know if my voice has changed at all, or if I even still have the same range. Carlisle is on his way so that he can be on hand for when I give this a shot."

"Go ahead, Bella. I'm here," he said from the doorway where he was standing with his wife.

"Okay, here are the copies of the song I want to try first." I handed over the sheet music.

I looked at Alec and he led us in. Once the music started I didn't hear anything, not even the front door.

_Been running from these feelings for so long_

_Telling my heart I didn't need you_

_Pretending I was better off alone_

_But I know that it's just a lie_

_So afraid to take a chance again_

_So afraid of what I feel inside_

_But I need to be next to you_

_Oh I, oh I_

_I need to share every breath with you_

_Oh I, oh I_

_I need to know I can see your smile each morning_

_Look into your eyes each night_

_For the rest of my life_

_Here with you near with you_

_Oh I, I need to be next to you_

_Right here with you is where I belong_

_I'll lose my mind if I can't see you_

_Without you there is nothing in this life_

_That would make life worth living for_

_I can't bear the thought of you not there_

_I can't fight what I feel anymore_

_But I need to be next to you_

_Oh I, oh I_

_I need to share every breath with you_

_Oh I, oh I_

_I need to know I can see your smile each morning_

_Look into your eyes each night_

_For the rest of my life_

_Here with you near with you_

_Oh I, I need to be next to you_

_I need to have your heart next to mine_

_For all time_

_Love you for all of my life_

_Oh I, I need to be next to you_

_But I need to be next to you_

_Oh I, oh I_

_I need to share every breath with you_

_Oh I, oh I_

_I need to know I can see your smile each morning_

_Look into your eyes each night_

_For the rest of my life_

_Here with you near with you_

_Oh I, I need to be next to you_

The final notes had drained away and I opened my eyes. As soon as I looked up, I found green ones staring at me.

"Bella?"

The room turned and looked at the doorway where Edward stood with a smile on his face and tears in his eyes.

"Ed…Edward?" My voice broke as I choked on a sob.

Before anyone could blink, I was up and running to him. He opened his arms and caught me as my body slammed into his.

"I've missed you so much, Bella," he whispered into my ear.

I pulled back and looked into his eyes. "I missed you, too. I have some news for you."

Edward set me on my feet and followed me into the living room. "What's up?"

I looked at Esme and Carlisle, who both nodded in encouragement. "I got my test results back. I am officially in remission. So far, the cancer is gone."

The cheers that erupted in my living room were deafening.

"Bella, that's great…"

"Thank heavens…"

I couldn't pick out one voice over the din. It wasn't until Edward leaned forward and put his head in his hands that I looked around.

"Um, can you guys give us a minute?" I asked.

Everyone nodded and got up, leaving Edward and me alone. I stood up and walked over, kneeling in front of him.

"Edward, look at me." I waited, but he never looked up. I finally put my hands on his wrists and pulled them away from his face. "Edward?"

He looked up and I was surprised to see tears on his cheeks.

"Edward, what is it?"

"You're okay? Really? It's…gone?"

I nodded and smiled. He pulled me to him and wrapped me up in his arms, holding me tightly.

"Thank you, God," he whispered over and over again. He finally let me go and looked in my eyes. "I love you so much, Bella."

I put my hands on his cheeks and looked in his eyes as I finally said the words that I have needed to say for three months.

"I love you, too."

**AN: Well, she finally told him. Was it worth the wait? There will be no chapter next week, but I hope that everyone has a safe and happy July 4****th****! Happy Independence Day for my American readers. Leave me your thoughts. I am also in need of some song ideas, so hit me with your favorite country songs. Until next time.**


	22. Chapter 21

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta, toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**AN: I apologize that this update is a little late. The characters weren't speaking to me. Now they have, so here you go. Get caught up on Bella and Edward and I'll see you at the bottom.**

**EPOV**

I walked into the studio where Bella was recording and sat down quietly next to Aro. I listened for a while, observing mostly, before Aro looked at me.

"What do you think? Her sound is a little different now."

I nodded. "The doctors said that was a possibility. She's a little huskier now. Has she tried to get to the upper range?"

Aro shook his head. "I think she is afraid to test it."

"Hmm, maybe." I sat back and listened some more. When the song came to a close, I slid back into the shadows, not wanting her to know I was here.

"Take a break, guys. The playback will be ready in a minute," Aro told them through the mic.

I watched the six of them laugh together and wondered why it was so easy for them to make her smile, but not me.

Ever since Bella had told me she loved me last month, it seemed as if she were pulling away from me. I couldn't help but wonder if maybe she didn't want me in the house anymore. Did she want me to move out? I wasn't sure how to ask her, but I really needed to know. I couldn't stand this…limbo anymore.

"Okay, guys, here comes the playback."

I sat back as Bella's voice greeted me, and just let the words wash over me that she had sang a month ago. I knew that she loved me, but what I needed to know was if she still wanted me around.

"Sounds great, Aro," Bella's voice came over the speaker. "Give us about fifteen and we can try the next one."

"You got it, Bells." Aro closed the mic and then turned to me. "Are you gonna go talk to her, or keep hiding?"

"I'm gonna hide for a little longer. I just want to listen."

"Okay…" Aro shook his head as Bella announced that they were ready. "Go for it, Bella."

I watched through the window as Bella sat down at the piano; it was rare for her to actually play on one of her albums. I was also not prepared to hear the words that she began singing.

_The first time I laid my eyes on you I knew_

_We'd spend this life side by side_

_I still feel the same though you're so far away_

_I swear that you'll always be my_

_Forever love_

_I promise you_

_Someday we'll be together_

_Forever love_

_I won't give up_

_No matter what_

_I'll be waiting for you_

_Forever love_

_Minutes and hours and years may go by_

_But my heart knows nothing of time_

_So don't cry, just keep me right there_

_In your dreams_

_And hold on to these words of mine_

_Forever love_

_I promise you_

_Someday we'll be together_

_Forever love_

_I won't give up_

_No matter what_

_I'll be waiting for you_

_Forever love_

_Love is the road to our destiny_

_Nothing can change what is meant to be_

_Forever love_

_I promise you_

_Someday we'll be together_

_Forever love_

_I won't give up_

_No matter what_

_I'll be waiting for you_

_Forever love_

It wasn't until the last note died away that Bella whispered into the microphone, so low that I almost missed it. "I love you, Edward."

My heart soared at her words and I knew my insecurities were just that..._my_ insecurities. Bella and I were going to be just fine.

**BPOV**

I had seen Edward sneak into the studio and then hide in the shadows. Something had been off with him lately; I wasn't sure what, but he almost seemed like he was running from me. Or maybe I had just been so busy that something else was wrong and he wasn't telling me.

After I whispered into the mic that I loved him, I stood up from the piano and walked out of the recording room and into the sound area.

"Are you going to hide the whole time you're here or are you gonna come talk to me?" I asked as I rounded the wall and looked at where I knew Edward was hiding.

"Uh…"

"Didn't think I saw you, did you?"

"No."

"Aro, can you give us a minute, please?" I requested as I crossed my arms over my chest.

"Sure."

I waited until he was gone, then I walked over to stand in front of Edward. "What's going on? And don't feed me the same old shit that nothing is wrong. I know you better than that, Edward, and something is bothering you."

Edward sighed as he leaned forward, putting his elbows on his knees and lacing his fingers together. "Nothing is really wrong, per se. I get why you haven't been around, I just don't like it."

I waved my hands front of myself. "Wait, wait, wait. Are you telling me that you've been acting like you lost your best friend because I have been busy working on my album? Are you fucking kidding me, Edward!?"

"No, that's not…"

I cut him off. "No, Edward! I have spent the last eight months _fighting_ for my life and my career. Now that I am actually feeling well enough to sing, you want to take that away from me?"

Edward stood up then. "No! That's not what I'm saying at all. Bella, if _we're_ going to work and not let our past mistakes wreck our relationship, then there has to be time for _us_, too."

"Edward, I love you. You know that I do, but I have to do this. I have to get all of this music out of my head. If you can't…"

He quickly grabbed a hold of me and gave me a gentle shake. "Don't! Don't even _think _about telling me that I should walk away if I can't support you! Bella, I have been by your side since you were diagnosed. Do you really think that I am gonna walk away now? I love you!"

"Then let me get this done. Please, Edward. I have two more songs to lay tracks on and then we can do the duet that I wrote for us. I just need three more days, please!" I wasn't above begging; I needed him to understand how important this was to me.

Edward sighed but nodded. "After the recording and your interview with ET, you are mine, Bella. I want _one_ week. No phone calls, no interruptions. I want to take you out on a date."

"Okay, I promise. You will have one week of my undivided attention."

"Thank you, Baby." He pulled me to his chest and brought his lips down to mine. They met, and I felt like I was home.

When we broke apart, Edward grinned down at me. "Get back in there and get to work. I'll see you at home. I love you, Bella."

"I love you, too." He kissed me one last time and then left so that I could get back to work.

"Everything okay, Bells?" Heidi asked when I walked back in.

"Yeah," I smiled. "Let's get back to work. I wanna lay these last two down tonight, if we can."

**~~STM~~**

I walked into the house four hours later, completely exhausted. I found Edward asleep on the couch in the living room, his song book open on his chest. I smiled and walked over to him. I gently removed the pen from his fingers and laid the book on the table. I then brushed my hand across his cheek.

"Edward, wake up, Baby."

"Hmm…"

I giggled and then tried again. "Baby, wake up."

His head rolled to the side and slowly blinked his eyes open. "Hey," he grinned at me.

"Hi."

"What time is it?"

I stood up and walked into the kitchen. "About ten," I hollered over my shoulder.

"Damn, Bella. You are supposed to be taking it easy, Babe!"

"Oh, shit. Edward, I haven't felt this good in months," I told him as I pulled out the fixings for a sandwich.

"Bella, please, I just need you to take it easy," he pleaded with me.

I turned around and leaned back against the counter. "Baby, I know my limits. I'll be fine. Don't worry so much." I turned back to finish making my food. While I was assembling the sandwich, I continued. "Do you think that you and the guys can meet me in the studio to record the song tomorrow?"

When I felt Edward wrap his arms around my waist, I relaxed back into him. He leaned down and kissed the side of my neck, making goosebumps break out all over my flesh.

"Yeah, we can do that." His mouth was still against my skin as he spoke, and I could feel his warm breath blow across my neck.

"Edward, what are you doing?" I moaned.

"Nothing," he whispered as he trailed his lips up my neck to my ear. He gently took the lobe in his teeth and nipped at it.

I could feel the heat pool at my center, but was I ready for this? It didn't matter, because I wanted it. I let my head fall back, giving him easier access. I felt his hand slide up my side and then farther up to cup my breast. I closed my eyes and willed my mind to shut off; I just let the sensations of Edward's hands on my body wash over me.

I turned my head, seeking his mouth. When our lips met, it was with a passion that I hadn't felt in years. I turned in his arms and wrapped mine around his neck, pulling him closer. His tongue touched my lower lip and I opened to him without hesitation. I moaned when his tongue touched mine.

Without breaking our kiss, Edward lifted me to the counter and stepped between my legs. I could feel his desire for me pressing against my heat.

"Bella," Edward growled, pulling away from me to feast on my neck once more.

"Edward, please," I begged.

Before I knew it, I was off the counter and wrapping my legs around his waist as he carried me to my room. He laid me gently on the bed and followed me down, pulling at his clothes on the way.

Somehow, we were both naked and overrun by passion. He stopped at my entrance and met my eyes. "I love you," he whispered as he slowly pressed into me.

It had been a while for either of us, so he gave me a minute to adjust to his size. I leaned up and pressed my lips to his, "I love you, too."

Edward began to move slowly at first, letting the passion build until we were both calling out the other's name as we fell over the cliff.

When our breathing returned to normal, he rolled off me and tucked me into his side. He stroked my hair as I lay there listening to the beating of his heart. Soon we both drifted off, with peaceful smiles on our faces.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I stood in the recording studio with a blissed out feeling.

"Look at him, Emmett."

"I know. He looks freshly fucked."

I turned around and glared at my brothers. "Fuck you both. You better not let Bella hear you talking like that."

"Lay off him you two," Garrett intervened. "You were both like that after you married Rose and Alice."

"Yeah, but…"

"Enough, Em!" I stormed. "Let's get to work. Bella will be here soon to record the duet."

The three of them got serious as I sat down at the piano. I started out and Emmett joined me on the drums, followed by the other two.

_It don't matter what plans I got, I can break 'em._

_Yeah, I can turn this thing around at the next red light_

_And I don't mind telling all the guys I can't meet 'em._

_Hell, we can all go raise some hell on any other night_

_Girl, I don't care. Oh I just gotta see what you're wearing._

_Your hair, is it pulled up or falling down?_

_Oh, I just have to see it now._

_If you wanna call me, call me, call me._

_You don't have to worry 'bout it baby._

_You can wake me up in the dead of the night;_

_Wreck my plans, baby that's alright._

_This is a drop everything kind of thing._

_Swing on by I'll pour you a drink._

_The door's unlocked. I'll leave on the lights_

_Baby, you can crash my party anytime._

_Ain't a spot downtown that's rockin' the way that you rock me._

_Ain't a bar that can make me buzz the way that you do._

_I could be on the front row of the best show._

_And look down and see your face on my phone._

_And I'm gone so long, hang on. I'll meet you in a minute or two._

_If you wanna call me, call me, call me._

_You don't have to worry 'bout it baby._

_You can wake me up in the dead of the night;_

_Wreck my plans, baby that's alright._

_This is a drop everything kind of thing._

_Swing on by I'll pour you a drink._

_The door's unlocked. I'll leave on the lights_

_Baby, you can crash my party anytime._

_If it's 2 in the morning_

_And you're feeling lonely_

_And wondering what I'm doing..._

_Go ahead and call me, call me, call me_

_You don't have to worry 'bout it baby._

_You can wake me up in the dead of the night;_

_Wreck my plans, baby that's alright._

_This is a drop everything kind of thing._

_Swing on by I'll pour you a drink._

_The door's unlocked. I'll leave on the lights_

_Baby, you can crash my party anytime._

_(Call me, call me, call me)_

_Baby, you can crash my party anytime. _

When the last note died away, I moved back from the mic and smiled over at the guys.

"Sounds great." Aro came over the intercom. "Give me a few and I'll queue up the playback."

We had just finished the playback when the door swung open. "What's up bitches?!"

The four of us turned as Felix made his way inside, followed by a laughing Demetri, Alec, Heidi, Jane and Bella.

"I'll show you a bitch," Emmett laughed.

"Alright! That's enough," I said with a grin as Bella sat in my lap. "Not that I mind, but what the hell are you doing here?"

"Didn't I tell you?" Bella asked.

"Um…no, we were a little busy last night for that kind of talking," I whispered in her ear, making her blush.

"Edward!" Bella swatted at me. "Anyway…Felix helped me write the song and they all wanted to come hear us record it."

"Wait, if he wrote it with you, why are we playing it and not your own band?" Emmett wanted to know.

"Um…" was Bella's only response.

"Look, your band should play," Jasper piped in. "The rest of us don't mind sitting out."

Bella and I looked at Garrett and Emmett as they nodded in agreement. Bella turned to her band, "I guess you guys are playing."

"Fine with us."

With all the arrangements made, Emmett, Garrett and Jasper headed up to the booth to sit with Aro while we got to work. Bella was planning on performing this song at the CMA's next month. It would be her debut back into the industry. I, for one, couldn't wait to perform with her again.

"All set?" I asked everyone. With nods all around, I turned and smiled at my girl. "Let's do this."

**AN: Okay, so they are recording, there was a lemon and a disagreement. Things seem to be getting back to normal. Next chapter we'll have an ET interview and a CMA performance. What is next for our favorite couple? Will Bella stay in remission? We are almost to the end, so leave me some love. **


	23. Chapter 22

**Disclaimer: All characters are the express right of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement intended. Also, I do not hold the rights to any of the songs used.**

**AN: Thanks to my beta, toocute24 and my pre-reader, Bee1982.**

**This is the final chapter. I am going to mark this one complete, although I will have an epilogue up in the next couple of weeks. Enjoy and I'll see you at the bottom.**

**BPOV**

"Bella! It's starting, get in here!" Edward yelled from the living room.

"I'm coming!"

"Don't forget the popcorn, Bells!" Emmett yelled.

I laughed, but grabbed the four big bowls and carefully carried them into the living room. Edward jumped up to help as soon as he saw me.

"Why didn't you get me, Baby? I would have helped you."

I smiled. "I know." I handed Emmett his bowl of popcorn. "You have to share that with your wife, Em."

He grumbled, but put the bowl in between them.

"_Good evening, I'm Nancy O'Dell…"_

"_And I'm Rob Marciano. We kick off tonight's episode with Brooke Anderson's exclusive interview with Izzie Swan."_

"_The country artist made headlines when she burst onto the music scene five years ago. She is responsible for such hits as Complicated, Loved You Anyway, Good Girl, a duet with Blake Shelton—Just a Fool, and countless others. When she was diagnosed with throat cancer at the top of her career, many were worried that she would never be able to rise above the cancer stigma…" Nancy started._

"_Izzie has a full list of accomplishments under her belt, not only for her vocals, but also her charity work. Just last summer, right before her hiatus, she joined Edward Cullen and HeartStrong to record a song that became the theme for the Cullen Foundation's 'Something That Matters' campaign. A benefit auction was held, and hundreds came forward to donate to various charitable groups."_

"_Let's hear what she has to say…" Rob took them to the interview. _

_Brooke Anderson came on screen. "Izzie, thanks for agreeing to this interview."_

"_Thanks for having me," _I said on the TV.

"_How are you feeling?"_

"_I'm feeling great and happy to announce that I am in complete remission."_

"_Congratulations. What are your plans now?"_

"_Well, I've been in the studio recording and have a new album that is due to hit stores in about three months."_

"_We've gotten reports that there is a new duet on this album. Can you tell us who that is with?"_

I smiled to myself, knowing that I hadn't revealed that Edward was singing with me. I had been very cryptic when I answered her.

"_I can tell you that everyone will know who I am singing with at the CMAs next month."_

"_Secrets, Izzie? Okay, so what about your love life? Are the rumors that you and HeartStrong front man, Edward Cullen, have rekindled your relationship true?"_

"_Edward moved in to help me through my recovery. He has been a great friend and shoulder to lean on."_

"_That's all you're going to tell us?"_

"_If and when the time comes that Edward and I have something to announce, then we will do that_…_together."_

"_Okay, well Izzie, it's great to see you looking healthy and happy. We look forward to seeing what you have for us in the future. Back to you, Nancy and Rob."_

"Wow, Bells! You really left them thirsty for more," Jasper laughed.

"Yeah, Bella, why not just tell them that you and Edward are back together?" Kate wanted to know.

"Because if I had, then we would have every single member of the press on our asses, and I don't want that. If I can get us another month of peace, then that's what I am going to do. After the CMAs, it will be impossible to hide," I told them, feeling Edward squeeze my shoulder.

"That makes sense," Rosalie smiled.

"Can we watch the movie now?" Emmett whined.

We all threw popcorn at him, but quickly agreed to turn on _Mission Impossible. _It was the only one worth watching, anyway. The other films in that series were terrible.

We all settled in and were engrossed in the movie when I felt lips on my temple. I looked up and found Edward staring at me, so I raised my eyebrow in question. He leaned down and whispered in my ear, "I love you."

I smiled. "I love you, too."

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I sat at the piano in the studio and waited for Marcus and Caius. I needed their help, and I had a feeling it would take a lot of talking and bribing on their parts to make it happen…especially on national television.

"Hey, Edward." Caius smiled as he walked in and clapped me on the back.

"Edward, what's going on that you needed us both here?" Marcus asked as he followed his brother in.

I smiled and began telling them what I wanted to do and when. "Do you think it will be possible?"

"Wow! Um…we'll have to call the shows execs and see what the time allotment is, but I don't think that it will be a problem. It would be one of the most romantic things that has ever happened on the show," Caius grinned.

"We also need to talk about the performance next week. Bella wants me to stay in the shadows until I join her on the vocals. I need you guys to help the lighting people when we go to rehearse. She wants this to be our 'coming out' so to speak," I smiled.

"You know, Edward," Marcus began, "when I first signed Bella, I didn't think that the two of you would make it. When you were apart, it really showed through her music and singing how much she cared for you, but also how much she missed you." He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees. "When she got sick, I wondered if she would even tell you. You surprised me, Edward. You stepped up and have been the man that she needed you to be. I hope this doesn't sound condescending but…I'm proud of you."

I nodded. "Thanks, Marcus."

We spent the next few hours working out a plan and getting everything squared away. With promises to let me know if I would be able to pull off my plan, the two men left.

I smiled and said a little prayer that everything worked out the way that I wanted…no, _needed_ it to. My future depended on it.

**~~STM~~**

**BPOV**

I sat at my piano as Felix, Demetri, Alec and the girls, lounged around on the couch. I was fiddling with a song that I had been thinking about. I started humming as I played, and soon started to sing.

_Let's wake up in the afternoon_

_Pretend that we got nothing to do_

_No we don't have to go by any agenda_

_We can make up our own rules_

_I see the way you're looking at me_

_Baby, know I'm feeling it, too_

_We can just light up every candle_

_Move from room to room_

_Stopping every minute just because you're in it_

_Wishing every day was Sunday, you're right next to me_

_It's how it's supposed to be_

_Hanging on every touch_

_Baby, don't rush, no no_

_Baby, don't rush_

"What was that, Bella?" Heidi asked as I let the music die away.

I shrugged. "Just something that's been floating around in my head."

"Sounds great. Why don't we finish it and see how it sounds?" Alec offered and the rest agreed.

"Alright, but I don't know if I want it on the album."

We got busy, and for the next few hours worked on getting the sound and harmonies together. When Edward walked in, we broke for the day.

"Hey," I said. "Where've you been?"

"I was down at the studio working on something." He smiled secretively.

"What?" I wanted to know.

"Nothing."

"What are you hiding?"

Edward came and knelt at my feet. "Bella, I'm not cheating on you and I'm not drinking, but I'm _not_ telling you what I was doing because it's a surprise…for you." He leaned up and kissed my lips, then left the room.

Had I really jumped to that conclusion? I guess I had. I didn't want our past mistakes to hold us back in our relationship because it would certainly mar our future together. Taking a deep breath and reminding myself that Edward loved me and had been with me since right after I was diagnosed, I stood and went into the kitchen, intent on making dinner.

After dinner, Edward disappeared again, only this time his mother had picked him up so I wasn't worried. I sat down on the couch and curled up with a book that I had been meaning to read. I must have fallen asleep though, because I felt myself moving and Edward's scent all around me.

"Hmm…" I whimpered.

"Shh, I've got you, Baby. Go back to sleep," Edward crooned.

I just buried my head in the crook of his neck and fell back into a dreamless sleep.

**~~STM~~**

**EPOV**

I was nervous as hell, but I had a good feeling. We had been rehearsing all week and the song had come together perfectly. We had even found a way to get Bella's band on stage with us—all except Felix, who had broken his wrist.

I had also gotten word on the last day of rehearsal that the execs had agreed to give me the time I wanted, provided they could air it. I didn't care; I thought it would be a great way for the world to find out about us.

I had just finished buttoning my shirt and was walking into living room when Bella walked out of the bedroom. One look at her and I couldn't breathe.

She walked toward me in a strapless red dress. It was floor length and had a small train floating behind her. She was absolutely stunning. Her hair was half up, with curls that hit her shoulders.

"Bella…"

She smiled at me. "Do I look okay?"

"Baby," I walked to her and took her hands in mine. "Okay is not the word. You're breathtaking."

She blushed, and I loved that I could still make her do that.

"Are you ready?" Bella asked.

I nodded and put her hand in the crook of my elbow, leading her toward our future.

**BPOV**

We made it across the red carpet unscathed and into the theater. The gang was already inside, seated and holding seats for us. When we found them, I noticed that Blake and Miranda were sitting in front of us.

"Bella, you look great!" Miranda smiled as she pulled me into a hug.

"Thanks, so do you." I turned to Blake. "How are ya, Handsome?"

"Doing great, Bells."

I turned to Edward, "Edward this is Miranda Lambert and Blake Shelton. Guys this is Edward Cullen."

"Nice to meet you. I love your music," Edward said as he shook their hands.

Miranda shot me a questioning look. I just smiled and nodded to her silent question. When the house lights blinked, we all sat down. Edward put his arm along the back of my chair and gently stroked his thumb across my bare shoulder.

Halfway through the show, we got up and headed backstage to get ready. In the dressing room, I slid on my jeans with the factory rip in the knee, and a wide brown belt. I pulled a cream colored, sleeveless peasant top on and covered it with a light brown colored cardigan that flowed like the softest silk. Light brown boots went on my feet to finish the look.

I took my place with everyone else, smiled and waited. Blake had asked to announce me, so I knew that whatever he was going to say would probably make me cry.

"This next performer had to take an unwanted hiatus last year, fighting not only for her life, but also for her amazing voice. She is an incredible woman and a cancer survivor. Ladies and gentleman, Izzie Swan and guest."

Yep, cue the waterworks. I looked over to Edward. "Are you okay?" he mouthed. I just smiled and nodded.

The curtains opened and Emmett, Alec and Garrett led us in. I stepped up to the mic as the spotlight shone down on me.

_Sometimes it feels like, I'm gonna break_

_Sometimes this world, gives more than I can take_

_Sometimes, sunshine gets lost in the rain_

_And it keeps pouring down_

_It just keeps coming down._

When the lights turned on Edward as he joined me, the fans below us erupted.

_This life would kill me if I didn't have you_

_I couldn't live without you baby_

_I wouldn't want to_

_If you didn't love me so much_

_I'd never make it through_

_'Cause this life would kill me_

_This life would kill me if I didn't have you._

I lifted the mic from the stand and began my walk to where Edward was standing. I took my place in front of him and it became just the two of us on stage. Everything else faded away.

_You are my heart, every breath I breathe_

_I'm safe in your arms, you rescue me._

_When I'm weak, you're strong_

_If you were gone I don't know where I'd be_

_You were made for me_

_(You were made for me)_

_This life would kill me if I didn't have you_

_I couldn't live without you baby_

_I wouldn't want to_

_If you didn't love me so much_

_I'd never make it through_

_'Cause this life would kill me_

_This life would kill me if I didn't have you_

When the music softened after the guitar solo, I leaned forward and placed my hand on Edward's cheek, allowing the emotions of the song and everything that we had been through to lead me.

_If you didn't love me so much_

_(If you didn't love me so much)_

Edward leaned into my touch.

_This life would kill me if I didn't have you_

_(This life would kill me)_

_Couldn't live without you baby_

_I wouldn't want to..._

The music picked back up and so did my voice. I bent at the waist as I held onto a note.

_If you didn't love me so much_

_I'd never make it through_

_'Cause this life would kill me_

_This life would kill me if I didn't have you_

The music didn't stop when I thought it was going to, nor did the spotlight move away from us. What did happen was Edward removed his guitar and knelt down on one knee in front of me. The audience went crazy and rose to their feet.

"Bella, I have loved you since I met you. We've had our ups and downs and I'm sure that we will have more. You are the music in my heart and the air that I breathe. Would you do me the honor of becoming my wife? Will you marry me?"

I couldn't breathe. My hand covered my mouth and all I could do was nod as the tears flowed down my cheeks.

Edward picked me up and swung me into his arms. The lights dimmed and the curtain closed as the cheers continued.

"I love you, Bella, so much."

I pulled back and looked in his eyes. "I love you."

Edward fused his mouth to mine and carried me off the stage. We were congratulated by our friends backstage and Edward finally showed me the ring.

It was a beautiful diamond with baguettes wrapped around the sides of the white gold band.

"It's perfect," I whispered as I looked up at him. "I can't believe you proposed to me in front of an audience that size. Is this what you have been so secretive about?"

Edward nodded, grinning. "I had to make sure that they were going to give me enough time. It was all prearranged. I'm just glad that you said yes."

I grinned up at him as I wrapped my arms around his neck. "Was there really any doubt?"

He smiled at me, and then whispered as he lowered his head to mine, "No." Then he kissed me.

I knew when I felt that kiss that I could face anything, as long as I had Edward by my side. With him, I would be a part of something that matters.

**AN: There you have it. I hope that you enjoyed Musicward and Singerella as much as I have writing them. Look for the epilogue in a couple weeks. I also have a new fic that will be out sometime next month called **_**A Killer in the Shadows.**_** I hope that you will all keep me on alert. Until then, happy reading.**


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